“Enough is enough”: One woman’s perspective on life in Iran today

As told to Adventure.com. To protect the author, we have kept their identity anonymous.

It’s been a tough time in Iran, especially over the last three years—high inflation, bubble economy, no job security and, on top of that, Covid. The government was not honest about Covid death tolls either, and for a long time, they refused public vaccinations.

Covid hit many small businesses on a big scale—many of these small businesses are run by single mothers and they still can’t recover from such damage. We also had no social or economic support from the government.

On the weekends, we’d normally hang out in the cafés and restaurants—there are no night clubs or bars in Iran. But prices have gone up so much that even going to cafés and restaurants isn’t an option anymore. Instead, we might gather in a friend’s garden or holiday place to party—with the risk of police raids. I call them “go-to-jail parties.” You can get arrested simply for being in a mixed gender party.

I’ve been totally lucky with my family and have always had their support, no matter what decisions I’ve made. I studied at university, picked my major, and since graduation, I’ve been working in the tourism industry. But many women don’t have any of these basic rights and are pushed down by society or family members.

I just wish for the basic human rights—I don’t think non-Iranians truly understand what I mean. It’s not about the right to vote or right for education. It’s much more basic. I mean, the right to eat, drink, read, write or wear whatever you want. To have an option and express it in any shape or form you want. To check into a hotel or travel as an unmarried woman wherever you want. To practice whatever religion you want. To date and marry whoever you want. Own a freaking dog as a pet if you want. These are the BASIC human rights. Iranians don’t have them. And for the last 43 years, they have been arrested, tortured and killed for a daily basis for wanting them. I just wish for the right to live normally, as many of you do, and NOT live in constant fear.

The death of Mahsa Amini [a 22-year Iranian woman arrested for not wearing the hijab according to government rules and who subsequently died in hospital under suspicious circumstances] has been a tragic moment. We’re full of anger that the same story is happening again and again. We cannot help it.

But this time has been very different. The anger became a motivation to fight for our rights. Enough is enough. Protests started and we did our best to send our voice away. And after five breathtaking weeks, that anger has changed to hope for change and we keep on with the protests. These are the longest protests we’ve had in 43 years.

And now everybody—young and old, from a nine-year-old kid to the generation involved in the 1979 revolution—agrees on the same thing: “No to Islamic Republic.” They want the change of regime and not any reforms. We all want a free Iran.

Iranian men are very supportive. Women sparked the protests and men joined in, asking for equality between men and women, then universities, celebrities, athletes, bloggers, all joined. At the beginning, the protests were for women’s rights—and we’ve had protests before, like Bloody November, three years ago before Covid, and others. But this is a bigger scale, and it’s more serious. And different because it’s led by women. Now, it’s a national movement… Iranians, men and women, are protesting not only for women, but also against gender apartheid, forced confessions, no due process, unfair trails, extra-judicial killings, no free expression, torture, child marriage, government corruption, the funding of terrorism. And mainly, they are fighting against theocracy.

When I started tour-guiding and leading tours in 2006 it was not a common job for a woman—it was a taboo. But I pushed the boundaries and made it my life. Traditionally, girls are precious and vulnerable in Iran, and have to be taken care of by males. In reality, of course this is not true, but it’s a very traditional image of women that society had.

But my family, especially my father, supported me 100 percent. He pushed me to learn English at the age of 11, then respected all decisions I made for my life. I’m so lucky and grateful to have him. And the same love I also got from my brother and mother.

After the 1979 revolution, Iran became an isolated country. To me, my job has been the best way to know people from all around the world and to practise language skills. It’s been through my work that I’ve learned so much about my country, from its history and economy to the cultural differences. Being a tour guide means living in a suitcase and the group’s vacation is a 24/7 responsibility, but I am in love with my job. I love traveling and meeting people.

I can’t imagine any job better than this in such a male-dominant society. I’ve become educated, independent and a strong woman. Even my tour groups were shocked to see a young female tour guide traveling with them for two weeks. Because of the media, they expected to see women fully covered head-to-toe in black even with a burqa. But they saw me so differently, always colorful, wearing a bit of make-up and so modern. I love the shock and reactions in their faces!

I always tried to show the real Iran to my groups. I cannot describe how I feel when they say Iran has been their best holiday ever—this is the best feedback I got from my groups. I tried to show them both formal and informal Iran; on one side, rich history and the most hospitable people you could ever meet. And on the other side, the big propaganda against the country and people—the Islamic Republic is not the people and the media doesn’t show the real Iran. And after two weeks of travel, they believe in my words as they experience how Iran is so different from what they heard or expected.

Right now, my major worry is suppression. We have tried so hard to keep the movement going but the regime has killed and imprisoned many people. They have cut off the internet and tried many ways to suppress and sensor the movement. They raided Sharif University, which is like Harvard, and there was a bloody night there. And anytime we have internet black-outs in the uprisings, it comes with suppression and mass killing.

We have paid a lot for freedom in the last 43 years. Every now and then, there have been similar protests in Iran, but this is the first time the world heard us and reacted to our movements. This means so much to us. Iranians outside the country also continue the movement, hashtagging on social media, and especially those with a big platform, so everybody heard us.

In general, Iranian women are strong and can’t be compared with women in neighboring countries. More than 75 percent of university students are women. We were free till 1979—we lived in the same free way as some of you do. But after the revolution, the government suppressed women and used a very fake version of religion to control the people. For 43 years, we’ve been fighting for our rights. It has been the toughest one month most of us have had, of fear, sorry, hope, pressure, feeling trapped that no one could hear. But we just tried our best to keep the movement going so it doesn’t die out, but we are very positive now and victory is soon.

Now, we need everybody’s support. We strongly need politicians’ support. We need actions and not just sanctions. What is happening isn’t what ‘just happens’ here. We know this time that it’s very different and our future is bright.

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