“Woman, Life, Freedom” became the slogan of the woman-led uprising that started in Iran in September 2022 after the state police beating and murder of a young Kurdish woman for not wearing her hijab “correctly.” This slogan raises important questions not only for Iran but also for those in the United States and around the world who are concerned about women’s rights and human rights. This presentation will discuss the ways in which many Iranians are thinking about the concepts of woman, life and freedom today. It will also explore some ways in which these concepts have been addressed by contemporary feminist thinkers and eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth century philosophers. Comparing and contrasting these views can help shed light on key issues in today’s debates on gender, reproductive rights, individual rights and social responsibility.

Frieda Afary is an Iranian American public librarian based in Los Angeles, a translator, and author of Socialist Feminism: A New Approach (Pluto Press, 2022).