Iranian social media users are posting and sharing videos of their own dance performances and renditions of songs by Mehdi Yarrahi as a protest against the singer's arrest for his latest song supporting women's rights.
Yarrahi was arrested on August 28 following the release of the song Your Head Scarf, which was accompanied by a video showing women in various social settings without their head scarves, some dancing to the music. No further details on Yarrahi's arrest have been released.
Yarrahi dedicated the song to the "brave women of Iran who shine courageously at the forefront of the ‘Women Life Freedom’ movement," a reference to protests sparked by the death last September of Mahsa Amini while she was in police custody for an alleged head scarf violation.
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Iranian Protesters Post Dance Videos To Support Detained Singer
Renowned Iranian artists including Dariush Eghbali, Ebi, Kaveh Yaghmaei, and Taraneh Alidoosti, as well as various political activists and journalists, have also rallied behind Yarrahi since his arrest.
Acts of civil disobedience have increased in Iran since the death of the 22-year-old Amini. Authorities have responded with a brutal crackdown on all forms of dissent, detaining thousands across the country.
Violators of the hijab requirement can face up to two years in prison, although proposed legislation would increase the maximum sentence to up to three years for repeat offenders.
While the protests appear to be waning, resistance to the hijab, or mandatory head scarf for women, remains high as it is seen now as a symbol of the state's repression of women and the deadly crackdown on society.
Several cinematographers and prominent public figures have also been summoned by the police or arrested, including prominent rapper Toomaj Salehi.
Other celebrities, including prominent actresses Afsaneh Bayegan, Fatemeh Motamed-Arya, Katayon Riahi, and Pantea Bahram, have been interrogated and have faced legal action after they made public appearances without wearing the mandatory hijab to show support for the protesters.