A must-read for anyone who cares about women's equality' Sheryl Sandberg 'A flame-thrower for
the rights of women who live under the thumb of repression and injustice' Tina Brown BBC RADIO
4 BOOK OF THE WEEK This memoir is the extraordinary story of how one woman Masih Alinejad an
awe-inspiring journalist and activist from a small village in Iran overcame enormous adversity
to fight for what she truly believed and founded a major movement for women around the world
with the simple removal of her hijab. It all started with a single photo a bold statement on
Masih's Facebook page: a woman standing proudly her face bare her beautiful curly hair
blowing in the wind. Her crime: simply removing her veil or hijab which is compulsory for
women in Iran. This is the photo that sparked a social-media liberation movement 'My Stealthy
Freedom'. Across Iran women started posting pictures of their uncovered hair on Masih's page
in open defiance of the strict religious beliefs of their country (and often their families)
while sharing their personal stories about this powerful mode of expression. With the creation
of 'My Stealthy Freedom' Masih has gained over one million supporters around the world and
inspired Islamic women everywhere to take a stand for their basic human rights. She's been
covered by the media from Vogue to the Guardian the New York Times and beyond. Last year she
was the recipient of the Women's Rights Award from the Geneva Summit for Human Rights and
Democracy. But behind the scenes of this movement Masih has been fighting a painful personal
battle. She is a divorcee -- a sin equivalent to prostitution in Iranian culture. As a reporter
Masih has been actively speaking out against the government's corrupt policies for more than a
decade and has faced abuse and slander at every turn. In 2009 she went abroad during the
Iranian presidential election with hopes of interviewing Barack Obama. Before the interview
could take place the elections were stolen Masih's newspaper was shut down and thousands of
Iranians were arrested. She was expelled from her own country and separated from her only son.
Although she eventually was able to take her son abroad she has not returned to Iran or seen
her family in years. To this day Masih has faith that one day she will be reunited with her
homeland. A defiant inspiring voice for women's rights Masih Alinejad speaks for women
everywhere. 'Intriguing and inspiring . . . her voice is so important to the Iranian people's
struggles for freedom and democracy' Azar Nafisi author of Reading Lolita in Tehran
