French feminist and author Helene Cixous speaks to DW about the courage shown by women protesting in Iran and what the movement means for the country.
Helene Cixous says 'Iranian women have symbolised resistance to alienation and the desire for freedom'Image: Lisa Louis/DW
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The writer, theorist and feminist Helene Cixous was born in Algeria in 1937 and has long lived in Paris. She came to public renown for her essay, "The Laughter of Medusa" (1975), in which she outlines how women can defend themselves against widespread oppression.
Speaking to DW from Paris, Cixous says that the current women-led protests in Iran are part of an extended feminist movement in the country.
Deutsche Welle: The current protests in Iran were sparked when 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini died in custody after she was arrested by morality police. What is the situation for women in Iran and how are they driving the protests?
Helene Cixous: Almost since the beginning of the Western feminist movements in the 1970s, Iranian women have symbolized resistance to alienation and the desire for freedom. There has been revolution after revolution in Iran for a hundred years. In every protest movement, women have been the victims and at the forefront.
Iranian women are real role models and are very educated. In 1979, they were the symbols of charity, solidarity and compassion. They were the ones who demonstrated in the streets. Then came the first act of repression: Women had to cover themselves with the veil.
A protester holds a portrait of Mahsa Amini during a demonstration in Turkey in September following her death Image: Ozan Kose/AFP
Who would have thought that this veil would become the symbol of women's struggle against oppression for all time? The latest episode was the match thrown on the powder keg.
My Iranian women friends tell me about their double life. On the street, they disguise themselves. At home, they are free and escape the hostility of this dictatorship. It is not surprising that this woman [Mahsa Amini] became such a symbol. Great liberation wars and movements are often triggered by just one incident.
Your best-known work is the essay "The Laughter of Medusa". In it, you describe, among other things, how women should oppose patriarchal systems of oppression. How have these ideas manifested in the Iranian protests?
My text was an update of Greek mythology. There is no better example to describe the position of women and the murderous battle men take up against women. Medusa was one of three Gorgons [powerful, winged daemons], the daughters of Phorkys and Keto.
She was the only mortal among them. Men were afraid of her. When they looked at her, they turned to stone. But why did she have such great power over men? Because she saw the men. The latter did not have the time to see her.
Men do not want to see women and they put veils over them so that they become invisible, like phantoms. It is terrible to what extent women have been veiled, even in daily life. Yet women are not objects, not veiled dolls. They are radiant. They are beautiful. My Medusa has traveled around the world. Right now she is obviously in Iran.
Helene Cixous was born into a Jewish family in Algeria in 1937. She relocated to Paris in 1971 and is pictured here in 1983.Image: Sophie Bassouls/Leemage/IMAGO
Some say that if the headscarf ban falls in Iran, the regime will fall. Do you see it that way too?
The two would go hand in hand. The veil stands for tyranny. By the way, none of my Iranian friends believe that the announcement that the morality police will be abolished will improve the situation in any way. A woman who tears her veil off her head in the street, as Iranian women do, is incredibly brave. She has conquered the fear of death.
But this strong gesture does not mean victory. Because the woman has to put the veil back on when she goes into a public building. The regime shows incredible cruelty. It recently killed two young people in such a horrible way. The government is prepared to torture. It wants to burn this into the memory of Iranians, especially young people and women. They bury women alive and say we will tear your heart out.
How can a regime exist that is based on cruelty to women?
Only the regime itself knows. But I don't think humans are capable of such things, only brutes. Even if such things do not only happen in Iran.
Where do Iranian women get all this courage?
Only the Iranian women themselves can tell you that. But I am deeply impressed by their courage. And of course, I ask myself whether I can legitimately comment on this. After all, I'm not in Iran and I'm not risking my life like the people there. But my Iranian friends told me, why don't you do something? Speak! If you speak, the local people will hear. It is important for me to say, I heard you.
Is the veil for you a symbol of repression, under any circumstance?
Yes. It is meant to make women vanish, to exclude them. Some say, there is a "good" veil. In France, some women see it as a political gesture, because the secular country is against women wearing the veil and thus the veil is, for these women, a war cry against the government. But why don't these women talk about the situation of their contemporaries in Iran? Don't they see that in a country with a such a long tradition, the veil restricts life, the body, freedom, and hope?
How do you see the near future in Iran?
I don't know. Even the people of Iran don't know. What is happening at the moment is impressive but also very fragile. All these demonstrations of revolt, of pride, of dignity — it's like a volcano with extraordinary power. But this volcano needs to be fuelled. Who is doing that? Ukraine is being helped by the West, and that is a good thing. But who will help the Iranians once all the demonstrators are in prison or executed?
'Woman, life, freedom!': Iran marks 3 months of protests
The violent death of Jina Mahsa Amini in September has triggered the largest protest movement in decades against the repressive rule in the Islamic Republic. The Iranian state has reacted with full force.
Image: LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images
Face of a revolution
On September 13, 2022, Jina Mahsa Amini was arrested by the morality police in the Iranian capital, Tehran, allegedly because her clothes and headscarf did not comply with the official rules of the Islamic Republic. Three days later, the 22-year-old Kurdish woman died in the custody of the security authorities. Her death triggered an uprising across the country.
Image: Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP
'Woman, life, freedom!'
On September 17, the uprising against the regime began at Amini's funeral in her Kurdish hometown of Saqqez: women removed their headscarves, waved them in the air and shouted "Jin, jiyan, azadi!" — in English, "Woman, life, freedom!" The call became the slogan of the growing protest movement. On October 26, thousands came to Aichi cemetery to mark 40 days since Amini's death, as seen here.
Image: UGC/AFP
Historic uprising against the ayatollahs
Amini's death marked the beginning of a historic movement. The protests against the repressive government have shaken all regions of the country, like here in Tehran at the end of September. And they haven't been limited to women — people of all ages, ethnicity and gender have taken part. It's the biggest uprising against the regime since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Image: AFP
Without hijab — and without fear
Over the past three months, more and more women in the Kurdish city of Sanandaj, in western Iran, have been taking to the streets without the obligatory hijab. They have shown great courage, as anyone who violates the compulsory veil risks lashes and imprisonment.
Image: SalamPix/abaca/picture alliance
Showing hair and attitude
Despite the threat, women and girls have not been intimidated. In October, these schoolgirls took off their headscarves and shouted "Death to the dictator!" — meaning Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Universities saw mass protests, and students, teachers and also oil workers took part in strikes across the country. The Kurdistan region was the scene of a general strike in early December.
Image: SalamPix/abaca/picture alliance
Regime reacts with violence
In an attempt to quash the movement, the regime has reacted with massive violence. Police and the notorious Basij paramilitary group have been sent in to break up the protests — here, police in Tehran approached a group of fleeing demonstrators with batons. Human rights organizations have estimated more than 400 people have been killed by security forces, including many children and youth.
Image: AFP
Randomness and brutality
According to eyewitness reports, police and militia have brutally beaten and fired at demonstrators, some of whom are said to have been shot in the back. Around 14,000 people are said to have been imprisoned for taking part in the demonstrations — like these women locked in a police van in Tehran.
Image: SalamPix/ABACA/picture alliance
Prisons filling up
The notorious Evin Prison in Tehran has become a symbol of repression. Political and intellectual opposition figures are being locked up here, made to survive catastrophic conditions including reported torture. In mid-October, a fire broke out at the prison and witnesses reported hearing gunfire. It remains unclear how many prisoners died or simply disappeared.
Image: UGC
Climbing without a headscarf
Prominent figures from the arts, culture and sports scenes have also taken part in the protests. At the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the national football team refused to sing the Iranian national anthem at their opening match. When climber Elnaz Rekabi, above, competed in Seoul without a hijab, the pictures made headlines around the world. However, she was quickly silenced and issued an apology.
Image: Rhea Kang/AFP
Cutting their hair
The protest movement has received support from around the world, with thousands demonstrating from Paris to San Francisco for regime change in Tehran. In Istanbul, this exiled Iranian woman cut short her hair in front of the Iranian consulate in solidarity with the oppressed women in her home country. Prominent women — and some men — have imitated the gesture worldwide.
Image: YASIN AKGUL/AFP/Getty Images
Symbolic support
The global support hasn't just been in the form of protests. On December 13, the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin was illuminated with the Kurdish words "Woman, life, freedom." In the United States, Time named Iranian women as the magazine's "Heroes of the Year."
Image: Markus Schreiber/AP/picture alliance
'No to the Islamic Republic'
The worldwide protests — here a demonstration in Toronto — have put pressure on the government in Tehran. Additional sanctions are putting a massive strain on the country's economy. The exchange rate of the rial has fallen by more than 20% against the euro and dollar since September, hitting a record low. Even before the demonstrations began, the country was suffering an acute financial crisis.
Image: Creative Touch Imaging Ltd/NurPhoto/IMAGO
Executed for 'enmity against God'
Two imprisoned protesters have already been executed: Rapper Mohsen Shekari and Majidreza Rahnavard, seen here. At least 38 other imprisoned protesters are facing execution for the crime of moharebeh, or "enmity against God." Even children can be executed in Iran.
Image: AFP/Getty Images
'Sow the wind, and reap the whirlwind'
The global community has reacted with horror to the news of the executions. The European Union condemned the deaths, and imposed further sanctions. Meanwhile, the protests, in Iran and abroad — including at the World Cup, above — continue. Following the adage "sow the wind, and reap the whirlwind," opponents of the regime have vowed that Jina Mahsa Amini will not have died in vain.
