I feel proud as a human to see these brave women standing up for their rights and wish them and their fellow countrypeople all of the success with no bloodshed. It's time we move out of the age of religious compulsion on all fronts.
That being said, the religious requirement is modest dress. Some traditions interpret that to require covering the hair or face. Other traditions do not. Hijab was uncommon in Bangladesh when my parents were growing up, but is increasingly common today due to growing cultural influence from middle eastern schools of Islam. That said, it’s worth noting that Islam is not like Protestant Christianity where lay people are supposed to interpret the meaning for themselves. Where relevant Islamic experts have spoken you’re supposed to defer to their interpretation.
Allah SWT’s mercy is boundless, hudhud punishments can’t be enacted for something minor of this sort. Iranian government lost the plot and is using every excuse to feign legitimacy when it never had any.
The same thing is repeated all over the world unfortunately with other religious faiths.
I fear that many of the people who have encouraged these protests are still in the shadows smiling everytime someone dies.
Alinejad is one of them.
Calling Alinejad a journalist is like calling Edward Snowden a journalist. They are nothing other than whistleblowers. Except Alinejad lied this one instance and shows glee when people die.
Please don't make these protests largely about the regime. They are specifically protesting for their rights.