OU students protested on the South Oval Thursday against the death of a 22-year-old woman in Iran who died in police custody on Sept. 16.
Roughly 100 protesters joined together with signs decrying Mahsa Amini’s death and the Iranian regime, calling for equal rights and freedom for women in Iran. Iranian music and chants of “Women, Life, Freedom” and “Stop killing our women!” overwhelmed the South Oval.
Amini was initially arrested by Iranian “morality police” for not covering her hair to government standards, which enforces hijabs. The Iranian police said Amini went into heart failure.
In an interview with BBC, Amini’s father said the family was not allowed to view her autopsy report and witnesses told them she was beaten by police. Her death has inspired mass protests across multiple countries, including Iran.
Peyman Hekmatpour, an OU graduate instructor, said he wasn’t surprised by what had happened. He said such things happen in Iran but the alleged brutality of Amini’s death sparked a massive outcry.
“This time feels different. … People don’t want reform — they want the regime gone,” Hekmatpour said.
Protesters holds a sign on Sept. 22 depicting 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, an Iranian woman who died in police custody on Sept. 16.
Many chants during the protest were directed toward the president of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, who was called a dictator by protestors. Raisi recently refused a CNN interview after demanding the female interviewer wear a hijab.
“People are chanting against the government, the entire government. They don’t want the Islamic Republic as their government. And, to be honest with you, what we see is that the government has lost its legitimacy altogether,” Hekmatpour said.
