London’s Handmaids’ March: A Tribute To Iranian Women’s Bravery

Dozens of British-Iranian women gathered in the center of London on March 8 for a silent march marking International Women’s Day. They wore the red cloaks and white bonnets imposed on female characters in the television series The Handmaid’s Tale, based on Margaret Atwood’s novel of the same title.

In a powerful display of solidarity with women in Iran risking their lives to protest gender discrimination and demand more freedoms and rights for everyone in Iran, the protesters walked from the Palace of Westminster to the Islamic Republic’s Embassy in Kensington area of London, where threw their costumes on the ground and chanted "Woman, Life, Freedom!"

Security forces have killed more than 520 people, including dozens of children, and detained over 19,000 others since the eruption of the protests, activists say. Following unlawful detentions and biased trials, the judiciary has handed down stiff sentences, including the death penalty, to protesters.