ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Dozens of protesters throughout St. Augustine and Jacksonville came together Saturday to express their disapproval of the Iranian regime
Similar anti-government protests are happening all over Iran -- some have even grown violent.
The protests are a response to the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in September after begin arrested by Iran’s morality police -- who enforce strict dress codes for women.
“For 43 years, the Iranian regime deprive a woman of their rights,” protester Bruce Asad said. “So for once in a lifetime, we are standing to say no to this regime.”
The national security adviser to President Joe Biden said Amini was reportedly beaten. However, Tehran police said she died from a heart attack.
Local protesters Saturday said the oppression their loved ones in Iran are facing isn’t something that can be reformed, so some of them believe it must be thrown out altogether.
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“These are a few of the young women that had been killed in the protests in Iran. And some of them are teenagers, even their children that are dying too, and they’re being killed out in the streets. No one’s doing anything about it,” said Rushin, who organized the protest. We’re not sharing her last name to protect her identity.
Rushin blamed the protests -- and the events that sparked them -- on an oppressive regime.
“They are just being controlled,” Rushin said. “They have to use religion to take advantage of these poor people and to justify what they’re doing. It’s not right.”
The demonstrations seen around the world such as in Germany and in Iran are mostly led by women.
“The freedom that you have, we want to have that. We want to be able to talk. We want to express our feelings,” one protester told News4JAX.
The protesters said that although the situation isn’t directly happening in the U.S., the people impacted aren’t that far away and could use support.
They also ask that people continue to educate themselves on what’s going on, spread the word and use the hashtags “#IranProtest” and “#MahsaAmini” on social media to raise awareness.