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Dancing taxi driver upsets Iranian regime

Dancing taxi driver upsets Iranian regime

Iranians are posting dance videos on social media in solidarity with a taxi driver known as “Uncle Sadegh”, who was detained after his dance moves went viral at the start of December. Sadegh, 70, became a social media celebrity thanks to his folk dancing at a fish market in Rasht, a Caspian coastal city in Gilan province. Iranian authorities closed down his Instagram account in response. Dancing has become a form of protest in Iran, particularly among women and girls following mass protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in custody last September. In March, five girls were arrested for dancing to a Selena Gomez song on TikTok without headscarves. “What kind of a threat is he?” one Tehran housewife told the FT. “He’s not harmed anyone but only made people smile. Plus, he chose a good fish for me.”


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