Hundreds gathered in San Francisco Saturday in remembrance of Mahsa Amini, the woman whose death reignited broad calls for expanding human rights in Iran.
It’s been one year since 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died under suspicious while in the custody of Iran’s Islamic Regime. She was arrested by Iran’s so-called “morality police” for not wearing a headscarf. She died in a hospital three days later.
The incident touched off months of protests around the world.
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A large crowd gathered at San Francisco Civic Center Plaza Saturday to commemorate the birth of the “Woman Life Freedom Movement” inspired by Amini’s death, and to call for action.
Protesters want Congress to take steps to punish Iran through diplomatic means, and they are angry that nothing has been done in the last year.
“The people of Iran are sick and tired of it. We have written to our congresspeople to support Mahsa’s Act, in order to put more sanctions against the Iranian government, against the Ayatollahs, but they have refused to do so. I’m very sad about that,” said a protester who identified himself only as Afshin.
California Senator Alex Padilla is also calling for the passage of the "Mahsa Act." He posted a bi-partisan statement with Senator Marco Rubio on social media platform "X", formerly Twitter Saturday, urging Congress to pass the measure which would, among other things, restrict Iran's ability to import or export weapons.
According to Amnesty International, hundreds of protesters and innocent bystanders were killed in protests after Amini’s death. Amnesty also reports that Iran detained more than 22,000 people during the unrest.
