Minority, LGBTQ voices must be centered amid Iran protests, activists say
Amid the ongoing protests in Iran, LGBTQ and other minority voices must be centered in the fight for equal rights, activists said during an Instagram Live discussion hosted by Planned Parenthood Global on Friday.
The group organized the event as part of its “This Is Brave” campaign, an initiative that endeavors to “show the connection across social justice movements,” Planned Parenthood Global Senior Director of Global Communications Crister Delacruz told the Washington Blade by phone on Friday. “For example,” she said, “sexual and reproductive rights are connected to the fight for LGBTQ equality: Just like anyone else, members of the LGBTQ community around the world who are able to reproduce need access to sexual and reproductive healthcare.” Protests, many led by women and other marginalized groups, erupted in Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody last September.
Amini was detained by authorities for allegedly violating rules governing how women can dress. The demonstrations continued over the subsequent months despite violent crackdowns from the Iranian government, earning the attention of the international community and prompting the U.S.
Senate to introduce a resolution condemning the country’s “systemic persecution of women and peaceful protestors.” Joining Friday’s discussion were Priscillia Kounkou Hoveyda, a human rights lawyer and founder of the Collective for Black Iranians, and Cyrus Veyssi, a digital creator and online strategist with a substantial following on social media platforms.
