‘Essence of resistance’: Symbolic performance from Montreal’s Iranian community

Volunteers from the Iranian community in Montreal put on a symbolic performance at Place des Arts Saturday afternoon.

Through dance, the performers showcased the events that took place after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini following her arrest by Iran’s morality police.

The “We Are Victorious” performance was part of the “ATSA – Quand l’Art passe à l’Action” festival taking place until May 14.

Performance director Mazyar Shahcheraghi says it was first created to share what was happening in Iran with the rest of the world.

“Every day people were being attacked, tortured in the street, killed – that day we thought we need to have something to show the world outside of Iran what is going on in Iran, that people are dying,” he said.

“So we created this in the hope of sending the voice of Iranian people to the western countries, especially Canada.”

Saturday’s performance consisted of a single dancer dressed in red surrounded by dancers in white and black. A performer dressed all in black waved a black flag.

Amini’s death and the worldwide protests that followed led to the creation of the “Femme, Vie, Liberté” movement in Montreal, which has been demonstrating since September.

“We do this to show the struggle and resistance of Iranian revolution that takes place every day in the streets of Iran,” said performer Saba Shahcheraghi. “We want to show everyone the essence of resistance, and the essence of feeling that at the end, we are victorious.”

Later Saturday the collective “Femme, Vie, Liberté” was awarded a prize by Amnesty International Montreal.

The group won the “Best Organization or Individual Award” for their involvement in human rights. With it came a cheque for $2,500.

“It’s an honour for us and we dedicate this prize to all the men and women who fight in Iran for liberty, who have been in jail, who spend their life fighting with this oppressive regime,” said Nima Machouf, a member of Femme, Vie, Liberté.