More than one year has passed since the young Kurdish-Iranian woman Jina Mahsa Amini died in the hands of the Iranian “morality police”. Her death gave rise to the Woman, Life, Freedom (Zan, Zendegī, Āzādī in Persian; Jin, Jîyan, Azadî in Kurdish) protests in Iran as well as a global social movement that shows support and solidarity to the Iranian uprising. The protesters have called attention to the women’s rights, repression of minorities, police brutality and the oppressing policies of the Islamic Republic. The demonstrations have given a voice for the Iranian people’s demand for democracy and social change.

One year ago, I discussed the Woman, Life, Freedom movement with Ph.D. student Golnar Gishnizjani (University of Turku).

What is the situation with the Woman, Life, Freedom movement now, one year after its start?

The documentary film Inside the Iranian Uprising (directed by Majed Neisi, Iran, 2023) answers this question and commemorates the lives of those many brave individuals who have lost their lives after participating in the demonstrations.

As the BBC is not allowed to work inside Iran, the documentary largely consists of videos that private people have filmed in the streets of Iran. The Guardian reviewer Roxane Gay summarizes: “There is an unspeakable power in pulling these fragments together and allowing them to tell a fuller story. It is horrifying, harrowing and a testament to the remarkable bravery of those who dared to protest, as well as those who recorded it.”

The documentary also shows the Iranian school girls protesting in their schools by taking off their hijabs, destroying pictures of the authorities and writing graffitis.

The documentary Woman, Life, Freedom: An Iranian Revolt (directed by Claire Billet and Mohammad Hosseini, Arte, 2023) includes insightful and touching interviews with activists inside and outside of Iran.

The recent book  ”Woman Life Freedom – Voices and Art from the Women’s Protests in Iran”, edited by Malu Halasa (Saqi, 2023) explores the creativity and body politics in the uprising. The scope of the work sounds fascinating. (A disclaimer, however: I have only read what is available about this book online and have not read the entire work yet.)

Other recent publications and conversations:

The article “Woman, Life, Freedom: The Origins of the Uprising in Iran” in the Dissent Magazine provides a good overview of the movement.

Feminist Futures is a multimedia platform that builds upon the Woman, Life, Freedom movement.

The Society for Cultural Anthropology has collected several articles that reflect upon the Woman, Life, Freedom movement.

Finally, here’s a recording of the “Woman Life Freedom: Iranian Women’s Uprising” Plenary Panel.

My thanks to Golnar Gishnizjani for helping me to find many of these valuable resources!