زن، زندگی، آزادی — جنبش انقلابی ایران
On September 16, 2022, Mahsa Jina Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman, died in the custody of Iran's morality police after being arrested for allegedly wearing her hijab improperly. Her death sparked the largest revolutionary movement in Iran's modern history under the slogan 'Woman, Life, Freedom' (Zan, Zendegi, Azadi).
The movement has evolved far beyond women's rights into a full-scale demand for regime change, secular democracy, and the end of theocratic rule. From 2022 through 2026, protests have swept across Iran — from university sit-ins and oil worker strikes to the December 2025 uprising that spread to 200+ cities.
The Iranian diaspora has rallied worldwide in unprecedented numbers — 150,000+ in Los Angeles, 250,000 in Munich, massive gatherings in Vancouver, Toronto, London, and Berlin. Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has proposed a democratic transition plan including an interim government, free elections, and a new constitution.
The movement represents the Iranian people's rejection of 45+ years of theocratic rule and their demand to return to the values of Cyrus the Great — freedom, tolerance, and secular governance.
It is a revolutionary movement in Iran sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in September 2022, demanding women's rights, secular democracy, and an end to the Islamic Republic's theocratic rule.
Zan Zendegi Azadi (زن زندگی آزادی) translates to 'Woman, Life, Freedom' in Persian. It has become the rallying cry of Iran's freedom movement.
The 2026 protests are a continuation of the freedom movement, with nationwide strikes, university sit-ins, and mass demonstrations demanding regime change and the establishment of a secular, democratic Iran.