Iranian-American journalist and women’s rights activist Masih Alinejad will discuss the women-led pro-democracy movement in Iran during an event co-presented by The Women’s Institute at Russell Sage College and the Sr. Thea Bowman Center for Women at Siena College.
Alinejad will speak at 6 p.m. on Monday, March 20, at Bush Memorial Center on Russell Sage College’s Troy campus. The event will also be live streamed.
Alinejad gained worldwide attention when she removed her veil, or hijab, and posted a photo on her Facebook page with her hair blowing in the wind. From that, My Stealthy Freedom was born; My Stealthy Freedom is Alinejad’s viral social media campaign against compulsory hijab that became the biggest civil disobedience movement in the history of the Islamic Republic.
Described by The New York Times as “The woman whose hair frightens Iran,” Alinejad wrote The Wind in My Hair, about leaving her country, living in exile, challenging tradition, and sparking change.
This Women’s History Month event is sponsored by the Russell Sage College Alumnae Association, Halloran Consulting Group, M&T Bank, and the Toros and Selma Gochigian Endowed Memorial Fund for the Study of International Law and Justice, Public Administration and Public Policy, and Reparations and Peace.
