Gender and Revolution in Iran: The MERIP Podcast

The Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP) has released the first installment of its “Iran in Context” series, featuring an analysis of gender and revolution in Iran. The series is a joint production between MERIP, the British Society for Middle East Studies (BRISMES), and the Italian Society for Middle East Studies (SeSaMO) to examine the political and military instability in Iran over the previous year.

The debut episode, recorded on June 18, 2026, centers on a conversation between two academic specialists: Manijeh Moradian, an assistant professor of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Barnard College, and Nazanin Shahrokni, an associate professor of International Studies at Simon Fraser University.

The discussion focuses on the intersection of gender dynamics and revolutionary movements within the Iranian state, drawing on the scholars’ research into gender segregation and transnational feminist solidarity.

According to MERIP, the “Iran in Context” series uses these scholarly conversations to provide a deeper understanding of the “political and military convulsions” that have affected the country.

Academic Perspectives on Gender and Iranian Politics

The analysis provided by Manijeh Moradian and Nazanin Shahrokni is grounded in their published research regarding the role of women in Iranian political structures. Moradian is the author of This Flame Within: Iranian Revolutionaries in the United States, published by Duke University Press in 2022.

Shahrokni’s contributions are based on her work Women in Place: The Politics of Gender Segregation in Iran, published by the University of California Press in 2020. Her research specifically addresses the politics of how gender segregation is implemented and maintained within Iran.

The conversation explores how these internal gender dynamics interact with broader revolutionary efforts and the geopolitical representation of Iranian women.

Transnational Solidarity and the Feminist Uprising

The series highlights the role of the Iranian diaspora and international networks in supporting domestic movements. Moradian’s recent work examines these connections, including a January 2024 piece in the Radical History Review titled Embodying Revolution: Situating Iran within Transnational Feminist Solidarities.

Further research by Moradian, including an April 2026 article in Meridians titled Feminist Uprising in Iran and the Politics of Solidarity and an October 2025 piece in Iranian Studies titled Decolonial Diasporas: Iranian Feminist Solidarity in Global Context, provides a framework for understanding how feminist movements in Iran connect with global solidarity efforts.

Shahrokni has also addressed the complexities of international representation. In a March 2, 2026, article for SPECTRE: A Marxist Journal, she questioned the nature of representation in her piece Who Speaks for Iran?–and From Where? Geopolitics, Representation and Solidarity.

The “Iran in Context” series and the associated research reference the work of Feminists for Jina.

The audio recording of this discussion is available through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music via the MERIP Podcast.