Female protesters burned their legally required head scarves and cut their hair to protest the death of Mahsa Amini, who died in police custody after being arrested for failing to cover her hair modestly enough.

Iranian women have been contesting the law mandating hijabs and long, loose robes that cloak the body for decades. The women’s rights movement has also pushed — with limited success — against laws that allowed men to divorce more easily than women, granted men exclusive custody of children, lifted restrictions on polygamy for men, lowered the marriage age for girls and required women to get their husbands’ or fathers’ permission to travel.

Iran Schoolgirls Remove Hijabs, Shout Slogans Amid Anti-Hijab Protests

Schoolgirls have since taken up the baton around the country, removing their hijabs, shouting anti-regime slogans and defacing images of the clerical state's leaders.