The article revisits the six-day nationwide women's protests in Iran that began on International Women's Day, March 8, 1979. Thousands of women marched in Tehran and other major cities in response to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's declaration mandating the hijab in public ministries, marking the first mass organized resistance against the compulsory hijab and the rising Islamic Republic.
This historical analysis matters because it examines a pivotal protest that was subsequently obscured, both by the oppressive actions of Islamist factions and by the neglect of leftist movements that prioritized anti-imperialism and class struggle over women's rights. The article argues that controlling women's dress was the precursor to broader political purges, framing the 1979 protests as a critical, forewarning moment in the consolidation of the Islamic Republic's power.