The story of Taraneh Farhadi: the film “The Salesman” and a campaign to end the violence against women in Iranian cinema
Leading Iranian filmmakers gathered in front of Evin prison to express their support for her, and Asghar Farhadi the Oscar-winning director of her film came to her defense. The open letter was published by famous actors and directors from around the world. A group of people, including Emma Thompson, Mark Rimbly, Mark Rozier, Ken Loach, MikeLeigh and IanMcQueen signed a letter together.
Taraneh Alidoosti, who starred in the 2016 Oscar-winning film “The Salesman”, did not like the hanging of Shekari who was killed in the first known execution linked to the protests. Shekari was convicted of fighting against God, for attacking a member of the Basij paramilitary force at a protest in Tehran.
The Committee to Counter Violence Against Women in Iranian Cinema said that it was not sure which of the government departments took Alidoosti into custody.
Alidoosti is accused of uploading a picture on the internet without a scarf and holding a sign that said ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’. The writing of this essay shows how many renowned actors around the globe are preparing a campaign taking their pictures with that sign in solidarity.
She said in a post that her silence means support for tyranny and tyrants and that every organization who is watching this bloodshed and not taking action is a disgrace to humanity.
The second death execution took place on December 12. Majidreza Rahnavard was hanged in the northeastern city of Mashhad after he was accused of killing two paramilitary officers.
Connecting with the protests: The story of a prisoner on death row in Iran, and a CNN investigation of the events in the uprising
“I will stand by the families of prisoners and the killed and will demand justice for them. I will fight for my home and I will pay any cost to stand for my rights,” she wrote.
According to Amnesty International, as of November, Iranian authorities were seeking the death penalty for at least 21 people in connection with the protests.
The death of her made a huge impact in the Islamic Republic, with prominent public figures coming together to support the movement. The protests have since coalesced around a range of grievances with the authoritarian regime.
CNN has obtained verified documents, video, witness testimony and statements from inside the country to suggest that at least 43 people may face the death penalty if the protests in Iran don’t stop.
It is difficult to know how many protesters are inside of Iran, but CNN has spoken to several people who have left their homes and families to escape the violence in the country.
Using a burner phone and a virtual private network (VPN) to communicate with protesters in jail, as well as families with loved ones on death row, is what she continues to do today.
“I came here in the middle of the night. It was dark. She and her family don’t know her current location, and she doesn’t know where she is.
Comments and messages I receive are very encouraging. People are feeling good to see that I am active now and that I am with them [during this uprising].”
The Iran of Yesterday and the Iran of Tomorrow: When Leila Became a Woman, Her Name was Shifted from the Wind of War
If the security forces of Iran watch her conversations, Leila uses third parties to pass on her notes through messaging services that are locked down.
Over the last five years, Iran has been gripped by waves of demonstrations concerning issues spanning from economic mismanagement and corruption to civil rights. The most visible demonstration of public anger was in the spring of 2019: when surging gas prices led to a revolution that was quickly met with lethal force.
The recent protests sparked by Amini’s death were seen as the most significant threat the regime has faced to date.
She had taken a university course and set up her own business to return to normal life after years of imprisonment, as well as working with a therapist to deal with the trauma she had been through.
I knew that if they wanted to silence me, then they would have to hide me.
She swaps her life savings for gold when she needs cash, and she stopped accessing her bank account as well.
I fear that if I are caught and sent back to jail, I will become a faceless name and not be able to help the cause anymore like many others who were imprisoned and never heard again.
“The answer of the Islamic Republic has always been repression and violence…I hope for a miracle and that this situation will end as soon as possible for the benefit of the people.”
The confidence, the grace and the moral backbone with which Alidoosti has today stood up to a bullying and violent state that has completely lost any semblance of legitimacy did not fall from the sky. It is the result of generations of women’s rights activists and revolutionaries that go back to the middle of the 19th century when the Iranian counterparts of Abigail Adams, Mary Wollstonecraft, Susan B. Anthony, Sojourner Truth, bell hooks and Angela Davis were active in Iran, demanding and exacting their rights.
The first woman who dared social taboos and cultural mores in the history of Iranian cinema is considered the progenitor of Golnar, the first Iranian talkie. Also known as “The Iran of Yesterday and the Iran of Today,” “Lor Girl” was the first sound film ever to be produced in the Persian language. When Shahla Riahi became the first Iranian woman filmmaker, she started a process that would eventually lead to the emergence of Forugh Farrokhzad, the first Iranian woman to gain international attention with her 1963 movie “House is Black.”
The Green Movement of 2009, the reformist movement of the late 1990s and International Women’s Day on March 8, 1979 all had at least something to do with the uprising of 2022, which was started by women.
The brave, principled and conviction of a new generation of women and girls at the forefront of today’s massive social uprising that makes all its historic antecedent fade in comparison are not as well acknowledged by all of that illustrious history.
The message of this uprising that Alidoosti has championed extends far beyond her homeland. It’s resonance is even greater in the US where the landmark 1973 decision of the Supreme Court to grant the inalienable right of women to make their own reproductive decisions was overturned in June.
The cry of “Woman, Life, Freedom” that has landed Alidoosti in jail is a universal message that can be understood and felt across the globe.