In 1979, an International Women’s Day march took place in Tehran, Iran.
The march began on 8 March, shortly after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini announced that women working in government offices should observe Islamic dress rules. What had been intended as an International Women’s Day gathering became a protest against compulsory veiling and broader threats to women’s rights after the Iranian Revolution.
Thousands of women marched in Tehran, while a parallel demonstration took place in Qom. Protesters came from varied political and social backgrounds and demanded freedom of dress, equal civil rights, and protection from discrimination. The demonstrations continued for several days and were met by intimidation and attacks from opponents.
A common mix-up is to treat the event as a routine celebration. It was instead one of the earliest major public protests against policies introduced by Iran’s post-revolutionary authorities. The decree was temporarily withdrawn, but compulsory veiling was later imposed nationwide.