As protesters take the streets of Iran advocating for equality as well as freedom for women, their punishments from the Iranian government have been getting more and more violent. The murder of Mahsa Amini, a protester who was killed under police custody after being arrested for advocating against the Hijabi laws, brought more advocators out onto the streets of Iran. This created a larger crowd of police and has devastatingly led to more violence and deaths among Iranian protesters.
On November 13th a protester was accused of setting a government building on fire during a protest. According to Annabelle Timist from the Washington Post, the protester could be charged with: “war against God and corruption on earth, as well as acting against national security”. These charges resulted in the Iranian Revolutionary Court handing down a death sentence according to Mizzen, a news site from Iran. The active news agency from HRANA claims that “More than 15,000 Iranians have been arrested and several hundred killed in nearly two months of anti-government protests”. The violence and aggression are only getting more extreme, and these protesters are facing punishment for their bravery to fight for freedom. The media is not covering this crisis enough. Lives are being lost and harmed and no one is willing to step in.
If you seek to help these protesters in Iran the best, we can do is do our research and be the coverage the protesters are lacking. Take this situation to your social media, educate your friends and family, and continue to speak out. These protesters seek freedom and are risking their lives for it, the least we can do as bystanders is speak up for them. If you want to learn more about the Iranian protests an article titled “ How To Help Iran Protests 2022: Stand Up For Women, Life & Freedom” written by Roya Blackland is extremely educational.