Mahi and Atieh live and work in the Netherlands, but grew up in Iran. In the Netherlands they fight for changes in their home country.
In September last year, 22-year-old Jina Amini was killed in Iran by violence from the religious police. She had not worn her headscarf properly. There have been fierce protests in Iran since her death. They are put down vigorously. People are arrested, tortured and killed. The protests spread all over the world. People also took to the streets in Eindhoven and some cut their hair in support.
Mahi and Atieh met at the mural of Woman, Life, Freedom that was unveiled in March in the Kruisstraat tunnel. The mural is a symbol of solidarity with Iranian women and their ongoing struggle for freedom and equality. Mahi was behind the mural initiative. Because of her public protest, she no longer goes home to Iran anymore “But I have hope,” she says. “I’m confident it will change.” She hopes to see her family in Iran again one day.
Atieh also hopes for positive changes in Iran. “I want to be a voice for the women there who don’t have a voice,” she says. Many people have been killed since the day the protests started. “It is a very beautiful country, it is our homeland. But what is happening now is terrible.”
Source: Studio040
For Eindhoven News: Lila Mehrez
