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‘Woman, Life, Liberty’ in Iran and the role of academia

Nature Human Behaviour volume 7, pages 3–5 (2023)Cite this article

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In Iran, women and men protest day and night for women, life and liberty. The moment has come for the international academic community to take action to remove the obstacles faced by Iran’s scholarly community, and join the call for equality, democracy and human rights.

As night falls on Tehran and the city is draped in darkness, residents open their windows. Following a half-century-old protest tradition, men and women — every night at 21:00 h, sharp — chant protest slogans in the most poetic fashion. Their voices shatter the sweet silence of the night, in hope of a new dawn. One slogan is now more prominent and louder than any other. It is a newcomer to the city: “Woman, Life, Liberty!”

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Fig. 1: Back of a postcard of Picasso’s painting, ‘Jacqueline lisant’.

References

  1. Wright, R. Iran’s protests are the first counter-revolution led by women. The New Yorker, https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/irans-protests-are-the-first-counterrevolution-led-by-women/amp (October 2022)

  2. Repucci, S. & Slipowitz, A. Freedom in the World 2022: The Global Expansion of Authoritarian Rule (Freedom House, 2022).

  3. Art. 939. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  4. Art. 9. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).

  5. Art. 301. Iran’s Criminal Law (2013).

  6. Art. 302, Section E. Iran’s Criminal Law (2013).

  7. Art. 224. Iran’s Criminal Law (2013).

  8. Art. 199. Iran’s Criminal Law (2013).

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  11. Art. 1146. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

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  13. Art. 18. Passport Act (1973).

  14. Art. 1117. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  15. Art. 1169. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  16. Art. 906. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  17. Art. 907. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  18. Art. 908. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  19. Art. 909. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  20. Art. 910. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  21. Art. 911. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  22. Art. 912. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

  23. Art. 913. Iran’s Civil Code (1928).

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    Ms Constitution. ‘Woman, Life, Liberty’ in Iran and the role of academia. Nat Hum Behav 7, 3–5 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01504-6

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