| Details | How is social media changing the social conditions for women in Iran today? Through the use of hashtags, memes, and other forms of cultural production, recent campaigns for women’s rights in Iran have highlighted the voices of women living in that country and in the diaspora. Iranian women are expressing their strength and resilience through unapologetic visibility in physical spaces and by producing and sharing iconic imagery online. At the same time, issues of access and censorship hinder the use of social media for social movements. This discussion examines how women’s movements are using internet technologies to discuss issues of identity, dignity, and justice and to contest the gender-based discriminatory laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). Join scholar Layla Hashemi for a discussion of the use of social media for public expression and the role of the camera in art and daily life. Prior to the talk, attend a 2pm screening of The Warden, part of the museum's 24th Annual Iranian Film Festival. Layla M. Hashemi is a Policy PhD candidate at George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government and a graduate research assistant at George Mason University’s Terrorism, Transnational Crime, and Corruption Center (TraCCC). Her current research focuses on illicit trade, human trafficking, and corruption in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Hashemi has worked for various governmental and non-governmental organizations. She is currently an adjunct professor of political science at Montgomery College, where she teaches courses on comparative politics, international conflict resolution, and global human rights. |
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