International Women’s Day 2023, more than any other day, must be a day to answer the call from Colombia – to support the brave people of Iran, to join the fight for that better world.  It is a day for us to show our collective hope in the streets and our determination that the world MUST be better than today – for my sisters, your sisters, our sisters.

For our sister -- 22 years young -- Mahsa Amini -- beaten to death by Iran’s Islamic theocrats for not fully covering her hair with a hijab or headscarf. Our sister Nika and Sarina,  16 years young, bravely going to protests for WOMAN, LIFE, FREEDOM and against the forced hijab after Mahsa’s murder.  They were both murdered from baton blows to their heads by Iran’s pigs.  At least 68 women have been killed during these protests and many more beaten, imprisoned and threatened with execution. For all our sisters at the forefront of the 2022 uprising.

For our sisters who survived Iran’s dungeons and continue to resist -- for Bahareh Soleimani, Somayeh Kargar, Yasamin Aryani and her mother Monireh.  For all our sisters who are still locked up – Narges Mohammadi, Nahid Taghavi, Sepideh Gholian, Zeynab Jalalian and countless others – who joyfully sang to us Bella Ciao from inside the nightmare called Evin prison*.

The righteous WOMAN, LIFE, FREEDOM uprising in Iran recently opened the eyes of millions worldwide to the dire conditions of women in Iran.  But more importantly, it opened our eyes to the possibility that we don’t have to live this way and that a better world is indeed possible.  When people rose up without fear, literally knocking the turbans off the heads of mullahs, to end theocratic rule in Iran and against the million ways women are degraded -- to paraphrase political prisoner and courageous resister Narges Mohammadi “Some things are worth sacrificing for”.

And even as thousands of school girls are facing poison gas attacks across nearly all of Iran, breathtaking protests continue as well such as the massive one on Tuesday at the University of Medical Sciences where the youth are chanting “we don’t want the Taliban, whether in Iran or Afghanistan.” We don’t want them in the US either!  A country that just ripped away a woman’s basic human right to control her reproduction and not be reduced to a baby machine is automatically disqualified from saying a fucking thing about supporting women, life, freedom in Iran or anywhere else for that matter.

While the thousands from around the globe who have joined our emergency campaign come from diverse perspectives, we say as one that the lives of Iran’s political prisoners hang in the balance, we must act now. Acting now means many things but it also means to be present on the streets with people everywhere who see the need to “break all the chains, unleash the fury of women as a mighty force for revolution” – yes forward to revolution in Iran and everywhere women confront misogyny, patriarchy, exploitation and oppression.

To conclude, these are the powerful and enduring words of our campaign’s emergency appeal, signed by some of the world’s most prominent voices of conscience, which you can find on our website freeiranspoliticalprisonersnow.org:

All of Iran's political prisoners must be unconditionally and immediately released

The governments of the U.S. and Iran act from their national interests. And, in this instance, we the people of the U.S. and Iran, along with the people of the world, have OUR shared interests, as part of getting to a better world: to unite to defend the political prisoners of Iran. In the U.S., we have a special responsibility to unite very broadly against this vile repression by the IRI, and to actively oppose any war moves by the U.S. government that would bring even more unbearable suffering to the people of Iran. We demand of the Islamic Republic of Iran: FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS NOW! We say to the U.S government: NO THREATS OR WAR MOVES AGAINST IRAN, LIFT U.S. SANCTIONS!

* Visit our Gallery page for information on these and other prisoners in Iran.