Beyond the ‘online’: Iranian women’s non-movement of resistance

Abstract

In many undemocratic countries where conservative law and patriarchal ideas are in place, women are considered second-class citizens particularly in domains of public life. After Iran’s Islamic revolution, Iranian women were confronted with a theocratic regime, which imposed laws and norms, which limited women’s activities and violated earned liberties. The activities of women under non-democratic states and patriarchal systems are thwarted by the repressive measures of authoritarian states as well as patriarchal society and hostile attitudes of ordinary men and women. New normative frameworks and practices imposed gender segregation in various aspects. During these years, women attempt to resist these policies, not by deliberate, organized campaigns but through daily practices in public life. Asef Bayat calls these kinds of resistance and activities ‘social non-movement’. This article focuses on a rather under-researched form of social activism and attempts to describe the way in which social media might be supportive tools for women aiming to build active networks and communicative spaces to deliberate on challenges to their lives. At the same time, these spaces function as the civic training ground where representations of political demands for social change are put forth. This article discusses ways in which social media have been used as platforms where women’s demands, among others, hold identity dimensions as well as violation of their basic and human rights.