Hundreds of people gathered in downtown Santa Barbara on Saturday to protest the treatment of women in Iran and to show support for women’s rights in the United States.
“It is not just a protest. This is a revolution,” said Dr. Aazam Feiz, a UCSB professor who came to the United States 19 years ago to work on her doctorate. “People in Iran, they don’t want this regime anymore. Enough is enough.”
View a photo gallery from the event by clicking the arrow on the right side of the picture above.
Feiz and the others gathered at the corner of Anapamu and State streets to protest the Iranian government after the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died in police custody. She was detained by the country’s morality police for wearing her hijab too loosely.
Her death has sparked protests around the globe and demands for a change in the Iranian regime. The protests in Iran have enraged the Islamic Republic; more than 150 Iranian protesters have been shot and killed by authorities in the country.
“Security forces have been using shotguns, assault rifles, and handguns against peaceful protesters, and in some cases they have even shot at people who were running away,” Feiz said.
Saturday’s protest began with members of World Dance for Humanity singing to Aretha Franklin’s “Respect,” before speakers stood on a platform to call for change. After the formal speeches, the crowd gathered in a circle and then marched along State Street to Haley Street, led by officers from the Santa Barbara Police Department.
The protest also was timed as a gathering ahead of the Nov. 8 election, when Proposition 1 appears on the ballot. The initiative would amend the California Constitution to explicitly grant the right to an abortion and contraceptives.
Among Saturday’s speakers was Karla Huizar, a community education coordinator for Standing Together to End Sexual Assault.
“We demand the right for safety from systemic oppression,” Huizar said. “On Nov. 8, our rights are literally on the ballot. Our voices will be heard and our rights demanded.”
She led the crowd in a chant of “We are rising!”
Through the crowd, people carried and waved signs, expressing their opinion on the state of the world. One person carried a sign that read, “Girls Just Want to Have Fundamental Rights,” a riff on the Cyndi Lauper classic song “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.”
Another person held a sign that read, “Say Their Names,” followed by the names of Hadis Najafi, Sarina Esmaelzadeh and Hannaneh Kia, three women killed in protests by security forces.
Another sign read, “Roe, Roe, Roe Your Vote.”
Santa Barbara City Councilwoman Kristen Sneddon delivered a passionate speech and called on everyone to take action.
“I have one message for you today: Vote,” Sneddon said. “Everybody you know needs to vote. You need to call everybody across the country.”
She said that women before her have fought for women’s equality.
“I grew up thinking I had rights over my body,” Sneddon said. “That my daughters and my son will have rights over their bodies. Those rights were taken away this year. Those are rights we got complacent (about).”
She criticized the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to reverse Roe vs. Wade.
“Who ever thought that was a right that could be taken away?” Sneddon said. “We’ve never had rights taken from us once they were granted.”
Speaking in Spanish and English, Frank Rodriguez, an activist and policy advocate for the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy, spoke about tenant rights at the rally.
“We need to make sure that every worker who works here has the ability to live here,” Rodriguez said. “We cannot continue to push out our communities, push out our families and our friends because we deserve to thrive and live here in Santa Barbara.”
The event was organized by the Planned Parenthood Central Coast Action Fund, CAUSE, STESA, the Santa Barbara Women’s Political Committee and the Iranian Academy at UCSB.
It was a day of activism in Santa Barbara.
Earlier in the day, the Santa Barbara County Democratic Party, the Democratic Women of Santa Barbara County and Planned Parenthood also gathered on Carrillo Street and held a rally in support of “inclusive education.” The party has endorsed 25 school board candidates in 15 elections across the county.
Darcel Elliott, chair of the Santa Barbara County Democratic Party, wore her Los Angeles Dodgers T-shirt to the event.
“Not only are the Dodgers built for October, but the Democratic Party is built for October,” Elliott said. “It’s really, really important that we get out there, especially on our school board races.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
