Azam Jangravi
Azam Jangravi, (Persian: اعظم جنگروی; born on June 9, 1983 in Tehran) is an Iranian Paralegal Human Rights activist and former political prisoner who lives in Toronto. She is primarily famous for being one of The Girls of Enghelab. She possessed the compulsory hijab in Enghelab Street by removing her scarf on top of an electricity transformer box and waving it above her head.[1]
Azam was taken in custody by Islamic Republic Regime on 15 February 2018 and was released later temporarily on bail.
Early life and Career In Iran
Azam was born on June 9, 1983. She is the fifth child of Mostafa Jangravi and Mehry. She was born in Tehran and spend her childhood years in the southern part of Tehran and moved to the Northern part years later when she was an adolescent. She was raised in a traditional religious family and had to marry by the age of 22 as her mother pressured her. [2]
She married Saeed, a conservative religious person whose family obliged Azam to wear Hijab everywhere.
Azam obtained her Associate Degree from Tehran University and her Bachelor's in Computer Science from the University of Eyvanakey. Later, she continued her studies for Masters in AI and Robotics.
Azam got pregnant with her daughter Viana in 2009. The couple never got along and as their quarrels got worsen by the time, She decided not to raise her daughter in that environment. Azam filed a divorce but as the laws and regulations of the Islamic Republic are against women's rights, it took her 4 years to finalize it. [3]
Activism
On December 27, 2017, during antigovernmental protests in Iran, Vida Movahed climbed on an electricity transformer box on Tehran's Enghelab St. She removed her headscarf, tied it to a stick and waved it while standing calmly at the crowd that gathered to protest to the compulsory hijab. She was immediately arrested by the police, but she got the name "the first Girl of Enghelab Street".
After Vida, many women reenacted Vida's action in multiple spots in Tehran, and Azam Jangravi was one of them. Azam went atop an electricity transformer box and waved her scarf as Vida did. After the police arrested Azam, they put her in solitary confinement and left her there for three to four days. [4] She was released later temporarily on bail[5]. In an interview she mentioned that she was sentenced to three years in jail[6] for "promoting indecency and wilfully breaking Islamic law"[1].
References
- ^ a b "I did it for my daughter, says woman arrested for headscarf protest in Iran". Reuters. 2019-02-14. Retrieved 2022-10-08.
- ^ ""I Was Tired: Enough Talk, It was Time for Action": Witness Testimony of Azam Jangravi". Abdorrahman Boroumand Center. Retrieved 2022-10-08.
- ^ Jangravi, Azam (2021-02-17). ""I felt like I was the most powerful woman in Iran"". Open Canada. Retrieved 2022-10-08.
- ^ "Iranian Hijab Protester Speaks Up About Cruelty Of Fugitive Judge". en.radiofarda.com. Retrieved 2022-10-08.
- ^ https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/02/iran-dozens-of-women-ill-treated-and-at-risk-of-long-jail-terms-for-peacefully-protesting-compulsory-veiling/
- ^ https://irb.gc.ca/en/country-information/rir/Pages/index.aspx?doc=457737