Like Iran itself, it's enough to make a traveler's head spin.
The regime in Tehran is increasingly feeling the pressure, but not from sanctions or the threat of a military strike.
It’s a vibrant and growing fashion scene, one that enables Iranians to defy the strict religious leaders who have ruled the nation with an iron fist since the 1979 revolution..
Many young Iranians have become emboldened in how they walk the streets, showing an affinity for Western clothing, jewelry, makeup and hairstyles. But it is more than just a fashion statement, say Iranians. It's a political statement.
“Violating the dress code is another way young Iranians can express political dissent,” said journalist and political activist Mansoureh Nasserchian.
Since the 2009 uprisings, when Iranians flooded the streets of Iran protesting the corruption of their government in the aftermath of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s contested re-election, the world was introduced to a new brand of Iranians influenced by social media and Western styles and ideologies, according to Nasserchian, who left the nation in 2002, then returned for a time right around the uprisings.
“When the young people filled the streets, not caring how they dressed or if they had hair covering, things really changed in Iran,” Nasserchian said. “Social media gave the courage to the new generation to break taboos and be open about political and social issues.”
“The solution to women’s issues can only be achieved in a free and democratic society in which human energy is liberated, the energy of both women and men together. Our civilization is called human civilization and is not attributed only to men or women.”
