"Woman. Life. Freedom. Queer. Trans. Liberation": Echoes of Azadi Breaking Free from the Inner-Panopticon

Abstract

This thesis delves into the Islamic Republic of Iran’s intricate construction and reinforcement of a cis-heteronormative national identity with an emphasis on the contemporary “Woman, Life, Freedom, Queer, Trans, Liberty” revolution. The study highlights the complex web of power dynamics, surveillance mechanisms, and regulatory frameworks that operate both within the public and private spheres. By utilizing a Foucauldian framework of the “inner-panopticon,” this research exposes how the Iranian state’s systematic imposition of heteronormative values extends beyond the confines of legal and social regulations, permeating the very fabric of individual consciousness. The paper contends that the omnipresent “War on Sex,” a strategic deployment of sexuality as a political tool, has fostered an environment of fear and self-policing, particularly for non-male-conforming individuals. As a result, this paper also focuses on severe social marginalization of queer and trans Iranians within Iran and its diasporic communities. With a critical lens rooted in a queer anti-Orientalist framework, this paper scrutinizes the role of the invisible panopticon in perpetuating gender and sexuality policing within an authoritarian regime. Part 1 of the study establishes the theoretical underpinning of the inner-panopticon, contextualizes the War on Sex within the Islamic Republic’s cis-heteropatriarchal agenda, and conducts a historical analysis of the nation’s sexual economy. Part 2 examines the panoptic institutions, including the legal penal code, the educational system, and the enforcement of compulsory hijab, as prominent tools employed by the regime to reinforce its ideological control. By elucidating these mechanisms, the research offers a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted ways in which state-sanctioned oppression is perpetuated and how it impacts the cultural and societal discourse surrounding sex and sexuality in Iran.