A Stand for Equality: Iranian Women's Rights Coalition

We protect rights through outreach and protection.

Word From Your Founder:

I created the Iranian Womens’s Rights Coalition to express solidarity with Iranian women. From afar, I have witnessed their oppression and persecution. I have watched in horror as Iranian women have been imprisoned simply for refusing to wear hijabs in public.

In particular, I feel the need to take action because I am an Iranian-American man. I also have several female relatives who are still in Iran, and it pains me to see them suffer under a regime that fails to see them as the equal of men.

I believe that more pressure can be exerted if Iranian men become more vocal in their support of women. We can raise money, reach out to government officials, and perform meaningful symbolic actions that show Iranian women that they do not stand alone. We should make it clear to the world that countless Iranian Americans (of all genders) stand with them as well. This is not a matter of female equality--it is one that affects us all. 

-Arman Ghasemi, Senior at North Hollywood High School