Item Summary

Kian - Kian Pirfalak, was a nine-year-old boy from the southwestern Iranian city of Izeh in Khuzestan Province. He was shot and killed by the security forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran on November 16, 2022, while he was inside his parent's vehicle during a protest staged in response to the police killing of Mahsa Jina Amini. A video capturing Kian testing his hand-made boat and uttering the phrase "in the name of the God of rainbows'' gained immense attention online. This symbolic reference to rainbows has since emerged as a significant motif within the various memorials honoring Kian.

Mahsa-Amini - Mahsa Jina Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman from the northwestern city of Saqqez, hailed from Kurdistan, Iran. She was arrested by the Morality Police on the accusation of not wearing the “proper” hijab, She ultimately lost her life due to torture while in police custody. Amini's death sparked the Woman, Life, Freedom movement, originating in Saqqez and Kurdistan before spreading across Iran and beyond. The movement's rallying cry, "Jin, Jiyan, Azadî," meaning "Woman, Life, Freedom" in Kurdish (and was also translated as “Zan, Zendegi, Azadi” into Persian), has become a symbol in the fight for justice and liberation.

Nika-Shakarami - Nika Shakarami was a 16-year-old Iranian girl who disappeared in Tehran on September 20, 2022 during a protest that ensued after the police killing of Mahsa Jina Amini. She was last seen burning her headscarf as she stood on a dumpster. Shortly after, she was pursued by security forces. Her body was discovered ten days later in a morgue, bearing signs of violence and torture.