In 2009 Jimmy Carter wrote an article titled, Losing My Religion for Equality. I’ve read it before but today it showed up in my Facebook newsfeed. I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook – don’t we all – but today I was thankful to have a second opportunity to read this heartfelt piece. In essence, President Carter broke ties with his church over equal rights for women. If you haven’t yet read his words, I encourage you to do so. There is one particular passage I find especially relevant.
“It is simply self-defeating for any community to discriminate against half its population. We need to challenge these self-serving and outdated attitudes and practices – as we are seeing in Iran where women are at the forefront of the battle for democracy and freedom.” Jimmy Carter
The Strength of Women
The women in Iran are amazingly strong. They are beautiful in mind and body, and I agree with President Carter’s words; they are at the forefront of the call for change.
Imagine being old enough to have lived under the Shah’s reign when women were free to dress as they liked, date whomever they liked and generally lived with the freedom of personal choice. Then came the revolution and suddenly life as they knew it came to a screeching halt. Religious doctrine once again ruled the land and women were taken back to living under the cover of the hijab. I cannot even fathom the disruption to life as they knew it.
I love this photo, such a contrast of old and new.
Standing Out in a Crowd
As a foreign woman I was given some slack when it came to the hijab. Of this I am certain. As long as they (morality police) saw that I was respecting their moral code with a head scarf and my front/backside was covered, I was good to go. And believe me, I pushed it as far as I could. We have a strikingly lovely niece who carries herself with such grace and dignity and twice, on one particular outing, she was told to adjust her hijab, while I barely kept my scarf on my head. More than anything I believe she was noticed because she carried herself with such confidence she stood out in the crowd.
I wore this outfit pretty much every day while in Iran. The tunic was long and modest enough for a foreign woman, and cool enough for the warm weather.
A Powerful Statement
As we entered the grand mosque in Iman Square in Isfahan, our two nieces were handed chadors to wear, but as a foreign woman I was not. The husbands of said nieces expressed their frustration but it fell on deaf ears. Once inside though the girls dropped the chadors and carried on. It may not seem like much, but it was a powerful unspoken statement.
Iman Square – UNESCO World Heritage site – the grand mosque.
Although they are a long way from equality, women in Iran in comparison to other Islamic nations, have an important presence in society. Iranian women go out on their own, they drive cars – machines, as they are called in Iran – and some even drive taxis. They are university educated, they are employed, they vote, they marry and they divorce. They are talented artists, they are skilled nurses and doctors, and they are the matriarchs of their families.
Ruled by Religious Doctrine
Our 3 weeks in Iran was my first time visiting a country ruled by religious doctrine and I admit to being nervous. Living in a democratic society I am guilty of taking certain freedoms for granted and as such I struggled with the societal expectations put on women in Iran. When we went to a restaurant and Abi removed his jacket because it was warm, I scoffed because I could not take off my sweater and scarf. It was irritatingly unfair and I grew to despise the scarf I wore. At the end of the 3 weeks though I took it off, something Iranian women cannot do.
The Power of Individuality
Women in Iran find ways to empower their individuality by coloring their hair, wearing (a lot of) make-up and embracing a strong sense of style. While out and about it’s not unusual to see older women comfortably wearing the long black chador, while young woman sport blonde hair and vibrant colors.
Blonde hair and vibrant colors.
And they have nose jobs, so many nose jobs. The tell-tale bandaged noses can be seen all over Iran, and not just on women.
The tell-tale bandage.
Road Trip
We took a 5-day road trip while in Iran and everywhere we went, people stared at me. At first I thought it was because of the way I was dressed. Then I thought they were a bit rude. But then I realized it was just out of curiosity. So, instead of averting my eyes I met their stares, smiled and said, “Hello” and the reaction was heartwarming.
Time and time again, young girls, young women and mothers alike would timidly approach me. They asked where I was from, did I like Iran and could they take their picture with me. They were incredibly sweet and genuinely pleased when I obliged. I never said, “No.” It was my teeny tiny way of extending the olive branch. These are the faces of Iran.
This sweet young woman just wanted to say hello and take a picture with me.
The mother of these children asked if I would stand with her children. She told us her daughter had never seen an American woman and she was so excited to meet me. Clearly, little brother was less than impressed.
The Women of Iran
What I learned while in Iran is that it’s complicated. It’s a society trying to balance religious doctrine with the fast-paced forward-moving 21st century. It’s so easy, isn’t it, to stereotype; to portray Iranian women as shrouded figures in flowing black robes, with very few rights. If we buy into the negative hype we can justify just about anything, right? But the truth is, women in Iran are finding their way and they are not only making powerful statements of individuality, they are working toward the greater good; equality for women. They are in fact at the forefront of the call for change.
This is the 3rd post in our Putting a Face on Iran series.
To read more about the power of Iranian women:
Iran to Appoint First Female Ambassador
Iranian Woman Wins Rights Award
Iranian Women Unpack Their Makeup Bags
The Complicated Beauty of the Persian Nose
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I really appreciate what you do to show the other side of Iran. I am proud of it , aunt Patti !
hope to see you again very soon.
Thank you, Payman! 🙂
I love this Patti. It’s so interesting to read about Iran from your perspective as a woman, a traveller and someone with family in Iran. Coming from the UK, I can’t imagine what it’s like to live in a country where law is based on religion and therefore women are afforded less freedom than men. I haven’t been to Iran, but travelling in very religious countries in Asia made me realise how lucky I am, as a woman, to have been born in a country where I have the right to education, work, to choose if I want to marry and to have control over my body.
Amy recently posted…Welsh Wonders – our Holiday in Wales
Yes, Amy, we are fortunate in that we don’t have to deal with these issues in our daily lives. The women of Iran have a strong voice, so hopefully, change will come sooner than later.
Equality, freedom are things that we often take for granted here in the UK and even forget that women have fought so hard to achieve things like been allowed to vote and have an education. I hope one day we will live in a world of better freedom and equality for all. Thanks for a great post, very sensitively written.
Thank you, Gilda, for the positive feedback about this post. I know I take my personal freedoms for granted. It was humbling to visit Iran and get a reality check of how other women in the world live. That’s one of the best lessons learned with travel.
So hard for me to understand this law. Of course, it’s made by men. I think they are terribly afraid of women.
I think you’re right, Sandy. But I also think the men of the 30-something generation will play an important role in bringing about change.
a very interesting post Patti. I wondered how you would find the circumstances of women in Iran. It is complicated, and we, with our Western ways, can’t simply offer up a solution, but it is heartening to know that, worldwide, women’s rights are becoming the forefront of the conversation.
Rhonda recently posted…Searching for Answers at Paquime
Thank you, Rhonda. It is so very complicated and I think said complication is what perpetuates the negative stereotyping.
Patti, this is a wonderful post. When I learned you and Abi were traveling to Iran, I admit I was concerned about how welcome you would be outside of Abi’s family. I watched the video you included. I also recently read a quote about how the thing most feared by extremists, is educated women.
Suzanne Fluhr recently posted…Artisanal Ice Cream – A Visit to La Ibense in Salou on the Costa Daurada in the Catalunya (Catalonia) Region of Spain
Thank you Suzanne, it was a bit of challenge to find the right words for this post. I did struggle with some things while there – I’m not used to “having” to do something – such as wear the scarf and modest clothing, but I always felt welcome – if not a bit of a novelty at the same time.
Wonderful post! Although I do not agree with Carter and his idea on the modern society, I found this post very interesting. I don’t think that getting rid of religion out of daily life is liberating. Sure, we live in a totally liberal society in the west, but did this make us happy? I think the only way is to learn how to live together, faithful to our beliefs, and doing it in peace. Very tricky and very difficult but to be honest I’m sick of the misinterpreted freedom we have in Europe.
Agata recently posted…Scenic route of the Dolomites
Learning to live together is definitely a societal goal, isn’t it? For the women in Iran, they love their country and their faith, but they want the right to free choice.
Agata, in the U.S., we’re pretty serious about letting people of all faiths and of no religious faith live as they wish as long as they are also tolerant of those with religious beliefs and perhaps mandated dress different than their own—at least that’s what we (most of us, I think) are striving for. We are now having a debate about whether religious belief trumps protected civil rights in the public square. For example, should a fundamentalist Christian baker be required to produce a cake for a same sex marriage or should a public official be required to perform or grant licenses for a same sex marriage if it is against their religious beliefs. Interestingly, very recently, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that a private company violated the civil rights of a woman who was not hired because she wore a hajib to a job interview. It’s complicated. I wish people could care more about our common humanity to unite us, rather than our race or religion to judge and separate us.
Suzanne Fluhr recently posted…G Adventures – Best of Turkey Trip Report
Well-said, Suzanne, thank you for sharing your thoughts.
I like all of you blogs but this one touched me. Probably because you talked mainly about the women and their struggles. Thank you.
Thank you, Diane. A lot of care and thought went into this particular post, I appreciate the feedback.