The rulers in Iran made one big mistake during the Islamic Revolution. They cut down women’s rights. But they figured that if women cover themselves up they could be allowed into Universities. And so they went. And they got very educated. The rate of educated women climbed from 30% to 70% over the last 30 years.

Yes they still walk around all covered up but there was something brewing underneath all these chadors and head scarfs. And the rulers missed out on that.

The women of Teheran have shown tremendous courage over the last weeks. They were not afraid to take a beating.

Neda Iran was of course the woman whose tragic fate propelled the women standing up into the world headlines. They know that what is happening in this country is not right.

This should serve as a lesson to other countries that still discriminate against women. No matter what your reasoning polical, religious or cultural.

Yes the demonstrations in Iran are about the past elections. But they have turned into something much bigger by now. These women stand up for their rights.

Bottom line: Many of these women are fearless heros. Some of them are dead now or imprisoned. They are still all winners in my book. I hope many other women from around the world will follow suit. This doesn’t always have to be on the level of trying to overturn a government. But gathering and speaking up does make a difference: To the outside world but even more so to yourself. It is very empowering and can chnge someone’s life forever.

How about that famous quote of Victor Frankl: ” Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom. ”

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Posted under Everything Else, Gender equality