The Demand for Freedom and Equality in the Street Below the Movement of Woman, Life, Freedom (August 2022)

This research, which explores the role of street protests in the freedom and equality movement of the 2022 urban uprising


Introduction and Statement of Problem
Academic disciplines in the social sciences have strong interconnections with each other, and no field can be completely separate or disconnected from other fields. Among them, sociology, economics, and politics have greater communication and connections compared to other fields. It can be said that there is a close relationship between the two domains of "social affairs" and "political affairs," influenced by factors such as globalization of the economy, culture, and politics, the revolution of communications and information, and the increasing complexity of human social life. Today, no political issue can be considered outside the realm of the social, and similarly, it is rare to find a social issue that is disconnected from the political sphere. In this regard, one can refer to social protest movements by social actors such as workers, guilds, and goals of the protest, the slogans of the protesters, and the policies of the government can be different. Sometimes the government pacifies the protesters through peaceful dialogue and sometimes it responds to the protesters with oppressive measures and interference of police, security forces, and oppressors.
In the past three decades, especially since 2010, a type of social movements of protest against economic globalization and unresponsive governments has emerged and expanded through a coalition of working-class, trade unions, lower urban classes, and the new middle class composed of teachers, students, artists, and others. Various examples can be cited in this regard, such as the pro-democracy movement in South Korea in the early 1990s with the participation of workers and students, protests by lower and middle-class segments in the West against the meetings of industrialized countries' leaders, and more recent examples like the declaration of solidarity and cooperation between the student movement and the labor protests of Haft Tappeh sugar cane workers in Khuzestan, Iran, and the teachers' protests in Iran in 2018 (1397 in the Iranian calendar).
The examples of these people protests that have taken place in Tunisia in 2010 due to corruption and social inequality, in Egypt in 2011 due to poverty and unemployment, in Romania in 2017 due to government abuse of power, in France in 2018 due to fuel price increases, and in China in 1989 due to repression and economic corruption by the Communist Party are all a result of people's dissatisfaction with the current situation and sometimes their anger towards the performance of government and state structures.
Iran has also experienced multiple and similar experiences in this field in recent years, from the Green Movement of 88 to the protests of December 2022 and October 2018. The source of these protests has been nothing but the people's dissatisfaction with the economic situation and the way of ruling.
A similar example of these protest movements that took place on a much larger and broader scale was the protest movement of August 2022 in Iran. What happened after the death of Mrs. Mahsa Amini in Iran was a set of people's protests against the restrictions and social inequalities that did not remain limited to this field. Quickly, economic and political slogans of protest also took shape and what had been the source of dissatisfaction for all years was once again demanded in this movement.
As we will later discuss in detail, it should be noted that just as the initial protests and expression of people's discontent in the streets -in a public and urban space -were raised, the protests in the same streets continued in the opposite direction and day by day, its scope was increased.
The protests of August 2022, which extended from the center of the country to the small border towns, extended from the street corner to the classroom of the university, from the workplace to the middle school, elementary school, and both inside and outside the country.
This research is aimed to study and examine the process of claiming freedom and equality in the following August 2022 -Mahsa -protest movement, which started in the streets and continued in the streets.
Despite coming to symbolise the movement and constitute its political and normative core, many other slogans proliferated and were echoed across the country. Several continued to centre gender and the oppression of women in forthright and unambiguous ways: 'We are all Mahsa, come on and fight!', 'You are lewd, you are dissolute, I am a free woman!', and 'Cannons, tanks and guns won't work anymore, tell my mother that she doesn't have a daughter!' Other prominent slogans harboured distinct valences, some of which frontally called for an end to dictatorship or called for unity in the face of the state's efforts to sow division along ethno-sectarian lines. These included 'Death to the dictator!','Death to Khamenei!', 'Death to the Oppressor, whether it be Shah or Leader!', 'This year is the year of blood, Seyyed Ali [Khamenei] is overthrown!', 'From Zahedan to Tehran, I sacrifice myself for Iran!', 'Kurdistan, the graveyard of fascists!', 'Islamic Republic, wedon't want!', 'Bread, labour, freedom, council government (hokumat-e showra'i)!', 'Referendum, referendum, this is the chant of the people!', and 'Cannon, tank, rocket, mullahs get lost!' The variety of slogans and the social classes and constituencies which mobilized around them clearly speak to the systemic nature of the indictment and refusal of the structures and apparatuses of oppression and exploitation which perpetuate structural violence against women, ethnic minorities, and the working classes under the Islamic Republic (Sadeghi-Boroujerdi, 2023, p.3).

Street-Level Politics Theory
Street-level politics theory was proposed by Asaf Bayat in his well-known book "Life as Politics: How Ordinary People Change the Middle East". Some of the most important drivers of this phenomenon include the negative economic, social, and political consequences of the globalization of the economy, the rise of trade and communication revolutions, wrong economic policies of governments, and the emergence of new information and communication technologies, particularly the internet and satellites. They have acted as major sources of opportunity, catalysts, and awareness raisers for the deprived and middle classes of urban society. Social movements have acted as key brokers of mobilization in street protests. Bayat defines the street as a public arena for the expression of immense grievances of the urban poor, deprived classes, housewives, and certain segments of the population, who are noninstitutionalized and mostly self-mobilized in the street to protest and express their economic and livelihood concerns. Of course, the role of social movements in directing popular protests and networking them cannot be disregarded. In the absence or severe incapacitation of political and civil formations, the deprived and middle classes of urban society through marching, carrying slogans, etc. assume their protest role (Bayat, 2010, p.11). He also describes the street as a medium for the transfer of feelings, grievances, symbols, slogans, collective sentiments, and public ideas of the people, particularly the deprived and poor of the city, who are noninstitutionalized and without much political and party support (Bayat, 2010, p.12). It must be noted that students have also acted as a major and an intellectual body of guidance in the social street protests of urban poor. Paying attention to this important matter, Bayat's Street-Level Politics Theory has a more practical and tangible application in Iran and connection with recent protests. In his other work entitled "Street Politics in the Islamic Republic of Iran", Bayat believes that two key factors lead to the transformation of the street into a political arena. The first factor according to Foucault's general theory of the relationship between space and power is that this public space becomes a local site for contestation between the people and the ruling power. The second element in shaping street politics is what Bayat calls a network of activism among users of public spaces. The street as one of the public spaces has the capacity for people to mobilize without having an active network of mobilization. Finally, what brings this network of activism into action is the shared threat. When the individual components of the network are threatened, the network of activism turns into an active and collective endeavor (Bayat, 2010, pp. 44-41).
The "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement in Iran can be analyzed through the framework of street politics, as it is a grassroots movement that emerged from the urban poor and workingclass women who face multiple forms of oppression and injustice in Iranian society.
The movement began in 2022 when a group of women across Iran started protesting against the mandatory hijab law, which requires women to cover their hair in public. These protests sparked a broader movement that demanded not only an end to the mandatory hijab law but also an end to gender-based discrimination, harassment, and violence against women.
The "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement embodies the spirit of street politics in the sense that it is a form of collective action that emerges from the bottom-up and challenges the existing political and social order. The movement is composed of women from different social and economic backgrounds who share a common goal of achieving gender equality and justice.
Moreover, the movement employs various tactics and strategies to advance its demands, such as online campaigns, street protests, and civil disobedience. These tactics are similar to those employed by other street movements, such as the urban poor and worker movements in Iran that Bayat writes about in his book "Street Politics." Overall, the "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement in Iran can be seen as an example of street politics that challenges the dominant power structures and norms in Iranian society, while empowering marginalized groups, particularly women, to assert their rights and demand social change.

Street Politics
Street politics refers to a collection of conflicts and complexities that arise periodically in the physical-social space of the streets between a mass movement and responsible authorities. The term "street" encompasses various areas, ranging from alleyways to sidewalks, public parks, and sports facilities (Bayat, 2000, p.39). In this context, the street is considered as the only geometric location for the emergence of collective movements by groups that lack any institutional platform to express their dissatisfaction structurally. This group includes occupiers, the unemployed, and street workers (such as street vendors), marginalized individuals (such as beggars and sex workers), thieves, and housewives. The term provides a detailed expression of the discontent of different social groups that lack a specific institution and dominant ideology or visible leadership.
Two key factors contribute to the transformation of the street into a space of political activity. The first factor is derived from Michel Foucault's general theory about the relationship between "space" and "power." The use of public spaces as a site of conflict between the masses and the ruling power is in line with this theory. In a sense, what makes the streets politically active is the active use and participatory engagement rather than passivity in public spaces. Therefore, the use of pedestrian streets, intersections, and urban spaces as gathering places and venues for public activities turns them into sites of conflict. These spaces increasingly become part of the domain of government power because the government regulates their rules and establishes order within them, expecting users of these spaces to act passively and in accordance with the laws formulated by the government (Bayat, 2000, p.40).
Any active use and participatory engagement with them challenges both the governing powers and groups benefiting from the existing order. This type of street life and such activities are by no means new. They have been observed in Europe from the 16th to the 18th century and more recently in urban areas of the Middle East. However, this street life did not create street politics. What has made them political at present are the new characteristics they possess. Unlike the past, where local communities enjoyed a high degree of autonomy and self-governance, they are now under the control of centralized governments that regulate and control the streets and local life.
The second element in shaping street politics is what turns it into an interactive network among users of public spaces. Every collective political action requires a certain degree of organization, relationships, and networking among its actors. For most parts, this organization occurs consciously, whether formally or informally. For instance, residents of occupied areas, the unemployed, or migrants from a specific location or race may establish formal associations with regular and structured communications, or they may develop informal relationships among themselves. For example, street vendors may gather and have informal meetings to discuss their issues or simply engage in casual conversations. In both formal and informal settings, participants in these gatherings have an active network among themselves, where they recognize, talk to, meet, and consciously connect with each other (Bayat, 2000, p.41).
However, contrary to the concept of organization that Tilly understands, which involves a high level of resistance movement, extensive networking, or strong interpersonal connections, networks don't necessarily have to be active. The street, as a public space, inherently possesses this characteristic and allows people to mobilize without having an active network. Such mobilization takes place through passive networks, meaning instant connections between separate individuals who, by tacitly acknowledging a common identity and within a specific space, have their attention directed towards other present individuals. For example, a woman entering a celebration where the majority is men will always pay attention to other women present in the gathering; street vendors always pay attention to each other even if they don't necessarily talk to each other. Conversely, taxpayers on strike, scattered as they are, lack such a network. There is an underlying passive network among those women and among the street vendors in a particular location. The tenants' council in an immigrant residential unit represents an inactive network of undocumented immigrants in a country. Tax strikers, women present at a predominantly male party, street vendors on a street, spectators at a football match -all represent individual components that share similar conditions and common interests at a certain level among themselves (Bayat, 2000, p.43).  According to Bourdieu, each of these groups is a theoretical group and only becomes tangible when represented. However, Bourdieu does not specify how this representation occurs. In Bourdieu's formulation, the essential element of group formation, namely the network, is either ignored or assumed to be so evident that it is not mentioned. In fact, individuals who are gathered together in any form have the potential to act together, but in order to act together, they need an intermediary loop or network that facilitates this connection. Undocumented immigrants or tax protesters will not be able to effectively resist government actions unless they are organized, as there is no intermediary loop like a common space that brings them together. a a a a a a a a a Figure 3. Active network: elements with similar positions come together (voluntarily) and link in an active network Tenants, football spectators, sellers, property occupiers, and the mentioned women, despite not knowing each other, can potentially act collectively because their common environment enables them to recognize their shared interests and collective identity. Figure 4 illustrates how they create an interaction network. The common threat acts as an intermediary between the interaction network and action. When these individual components face threats to their achievements, the existing interaction network among them naturally transforms into an active network of collective action. That is why property occupiers immediately come together when faced with the threat of eviction and dispossession, even if they may not know each other at all (Bayat, 2000, p.45). Tenants, football spectators, sellers, property occupiers, and the mentioned women, despite not knowing each other, can potentially act collectively because their common environment enables them to recognize their shared interests and their hidden and unspoken relationships. This phenomenon is not merely due to their psychological arousal or an irrational collective action but signifies a sociological reality, namely the recognition of common interests and the formation of hidden relationships. For instance, rival fans in a football match may come to each other's aid in confrontations with the police on the streets. Similarly, individuals who have a form of organization among themselves may seek to extend their network (either active or inactive) beyond their existing members. For example, students, factory workers, or women's associations protesting on the streets do so to gain social support and strengthen their achievements. The act of public demonstration itself signifies an effort to establish a connection with those who are unfamiliar to the protesters but may share similar conditions. Through their actions, the protesters hope to activate these latent relationships to expand their collective action.
It should be emphasized that the process of transforming an inactive network into an active network of collective action is never a predetermined or specified course. This process is subject to the same complexities and factors that are required to transform a consciously organized network into a public mobilization. Factors such as a crisis of government legitimacy, divisions among societal elites, social control gaps, and access to new resources can all facilitate collective action, while threats such as repression, internal group divisions, and the transience of temporary successes can delay collective mobilization. The point of discussion here is not that the threat of eviction for property occupiers will necessarily lead to collective resistance. Just as a labor union may surrender to the employer's use of unemployed workers before the threat becomes serious. Rather, the argument is to demonstrate how groups of individuals, without active networks and organization, can quickly engage in action, and this is only made possible through the functioning of latent networks.
Collective action without planning lacks structure and can destabilize the street as a highly contested axis, resulting in politics. What is hidden beyond the political danger of the street is the activity of inactive networks. It is evident that streets are public spaces in every sense, and there is no doubt that all non-populist governments will strongly control the streets. While governments may be able to restrict and control pre-organized demonstrations and marches, they certainly cannot prevent the population from working, driving, walking, and essentially living on the streets. The more open and visible a public space is, the greater the extent of inactive network activity and, consequently, the potential for collective action. Inactive networks are an inherent element of street life and alleyways, ensuring permanent collaboration among individual activists when their well-being and comfort are threatened. Without understanding the concept of inactive networks, it is difficult to comprehend many surprising and spontaneous uprisings that occur in urban environments. This dialectic of collective and individual action, the possibility of collective resistance alongside the moral justification of individual advancements, may explain the resilience of groups that struggle for survival and improvement in difficult circumstances (Bayat, 2000, p.47).

Opposition Politics and Social Change
Collective action has played a major role in the political processes of Middle Eastern nations. These groups are symbolically organized, self-aware, and usually have a specific leadership or discourse. However, this kind of organized action does not take shape in every place or time; it requires a political opportunity, that is, a time when political and controlling mechanisms become weak. For example, due to a political or economic crisis, international pressure, or a rift among ruling elites. The reform government of Mohammad Khatami in Iran (1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005) was one such example (Bayat, 2010, p.19). When political activism is prohibited, political groups that are not allowed or are marginalized from the political scene temporarily move out or go underground. The harsh reality is that these opposition movements can be non-democratic actors (Bayat, 2010, pp.20-21). When only a few revolutionary activists take risks and embark on dangerous subversive operations, others turn to street politics and express their dissatisfaction in public space, get involved in civil disobedience, or resort to 'social passivism' which links their activity to everyday life (Bayat, 2010, p.21).

Street Politics and Political Streets
"The street," with its most tangible, palpable, and explicit expression, tells us that the masses of people are no longer condemned to remain on the sidelines of politics, passive, indifferent, and merely spectators. Instead, they have become active actors in the social and political arena, challenging governments with continuous expressions of economic, class-based demands. The street tells us where the decision-makers and planners have gone astray, where they have reached a dead end, and where they have deviated from the right path (Tajik, 2008, p.35).
The populist inclinations and the welfare and economic concessions offered by Islamists to the urban poor, along with their use of language, symbols, and shared values, have led to the strategic alliance between the urban poor, the middle class, and the Islamists. Such alliances have primarily taken place in public squares and streets. The spread of poverty, unemployment, and the influx of rural migrants have become focal points for Islamic and justice-seeking social movements in the Middle East (Bayat, 2010, p.174). In this context, the use of political literature related to the marginalized, its confrontation with power and exploitation, and the existence of service centers such as health clinics, schools, legal institutions, and financial and welfare assistance have had a significant impact on attracting support from these segments in street protests in the Arab world in recent decades (Bayat, 2010, pp.174-179).
The public urban space plays a key role in resistance. When people are denied the power of elections to change their plight, they may turn to their power (student protest or labor strike) to pressure authorities to compel them to create change. But for other urban constituencies (unemployed, housewives, and the "nameless and faceless") structurally excluded from the power dynamics of creating disruption (such as protest), the street is the first and last line of resistance. This type of street politics involves a set of intentional and purposeful engagements between an individual or a group of people and authorities that take shape in physical and social spaces, from back alleys to crowded streets and squares, and is expressed. Here, the site of contention is the active use of the public space by individuals who, in modern states, are only passively entitled to use it. Active or participatory use of public spaces challenges authorities who see themselves as the sole arbiters of public order and control. But street politics has another dimension that does not merely limit itself to contention between authorities and disenfranchised or non-state groups. The contention is over the control of space and public order. The streets are not only sites where people express their discontent, but also sites where they construct their identity, expand their solidarity and carry their protest beyond the realm of the intimate to embrace strangers and the unknown. Here the streets act as mediators through which strangers and passersby can, through the organization of mutual interests and shared sentiments, forcefully connect (Bayat, 2010, pp.21-23). Thus a small protest can turn into a powerful display of solidarity and this is why almost any form of political dissent, revolution, or protest movement is born in the urban streets. It is this encompassing nature of street politics that compels authorities to repress it severely and widely. If a government can shut down universities or declare political parties illegal, it cannot easily block the natural flow of everyday life in the streets; except by resorting to permanent repression and policing as an element of everyday life strategy. In other words, the urban streets are not just physical spaces that shape and express contention, create collectives, expand solidarity, and give rise to "street politics", but also symbolic sites that carry an important emblem of a nation or society's collective sentiments shared emotions and public opinions. This space is called political streets. Thus, political streets refer to the collective sentiments, shared emotions, and public opinions expressed every day in language in public spaces such as taxis, buses, shops, and pedestrian strolls or street protests.

The Shared Features of Industrial Revolution Movements
The shared features of Industrial Revolution movements can be described as such: These movements appear in three categories or levels: movements that occur at a local level, movements that occur at a national level, and global movements. What has caused the emergence of new social movements, which in form and nature differ from past movements, are the extensive scientific and industrial advances that have led to the emergence of power based on knowledge and information, the emergence of new technologies such as the Internet, mobile satellites, etc. The most important issues of new social movements are phenomena such as democratic identity and human rights. These issues are not exclusive to lagging countries, but are the main concerns of social movements in advanced countries (Rahbar, 2014, p.259).
An important consequence of the industrial age or information society is the "empowerment of new social movements compared to the past. These movements have been able to easily express public opinion through access to modern communication tools such as the Internet, satellites, SMS, and access to information networks. While in the past all information networks were in the hands of the government and were heavily controlled. Under the influence of new inventions and the expansion of virtual spaces, such monopolies have been removed and public opinion is now organized by opposition groups. Important examples of such effects can be seen in the so-called color revolutions in Ukraine, Georgia and Kyrgyzstan and recent uprisings in Tunisia and Middle Eastern countries, which show how opposition groups have been able to successfully express public opinion through new media against the central government.
These movements have become transnational due to the communications revolution and have taken on global dimensions in such a way that the occurrence of one of them in the farthest corner of the world causes a reaction in other parts of the world. This is due to the emergence of new technologies and the progress in globalization. One of the important effects of these late industrial transformations is the influence of public opinion in other parts of the world and even the influence on the policies of governments and international organizations, both governmental and non-governmental, in favor of the movement, since the powerful governments of today are mostly democratic, so in order to take a vote in the various trade guilds, city councils, parliaments and executive bodies, they must be in line with public opinion in society. Therefore, movements and social protests in other parts of the world can influence public opinion in those countries by using the facilities and facilities provided by the new industrial advances such as satellites, the Internet, transportation facilities for travel to other parts of the world, and thus indirectly parties and groups and governments in those countries through information broadcasting, help or apply pressure on the oppressive government (Rahbar, 2014, p.265).
Today, the role of global civil society and independent international organizations in defending social movements has increased. These organizations have been active in all fields and have supported the oppressed rights in various countries, which have attracted global attention.
Under the influence of new technological changes, especially in the field of media, many identities and powerful oppositions, some of which have not even been taken into account so far, have already been transformed and "appear and emerge". As in the industrial modern era, everything is in the framework of the nation-states, so due to the government's control over them and the modern era's homogenization policy, oppressed national, religious, linguistic, racial, and .... identities did not have the opportunity and possibility to express identity and protest. But today, those identities can have the opportunity and ability to express identity and public ideas to their advantage through new possibilities such as modern communication tools and advanced technologies. In other words, local and cultural "other nations" identities are emerging from broader national identities. They see themselves as people who are nationally, religiously, culturally, and historically shared by their customs and traditions. The fragmentation of identities in the United States has shown a growing national, religious and ethnic diversity and has called for broader movements in other countries. Movements that are to request self-determination and political identification. Since the end of the Cold War, conflicts between national groups have become the biggest challenge to domestic and international security, as recognized around the world. Also, today minorities have come to be the main victims of obvious violations that are against human rights. According to Alwin and Hiedi Tafler, the first principle of creative governance is the third wave of minorities. According to this principle, the majority rule, which is the key principle of the second wave of the project, has been gradually old and obsolete. These minorities are not majorities, which are heavily layered and in which only a small number of groups are united to form a majority, but a composite society in which thousands of minorities, many of them temporary, are intertwined and create a temporary pattern. New progress has given minorities, national, racial, linguistic, geographical, religious and gender-based, the power and space to make their voices heard. These minorities range from fundamentalists to self-determination seekers and officially recognized. (Rahbari, 2014, p.270).
The use of symbols in new social movements has become more important than in the past, and these movements use various methods to identify themselves and attract attention. Since access to new industrial capabilities will be unequal compared to the past, new industrial transformations will lead to other stratified societies that can help solve such a problem by creating "dissatisfactions" and creating new social identities and movements.
Unlike the past, there is no conflict between different classes in new social movements, but rather they are characterized by various features, especially in terms of identity, aimed at redefining and establishing independence. Due to the growth of the middle class in the modern era, its share in new social movements has increased and many of the objectives of new movements are part of the concerns of this class.
One of the most important features of new movements is the lack of unitary leadership and, in particular, the lack of charisma in many cases. Due to the increase in awareness and the growth of the middle class economically and culturally, and due to the increasing independence of human beings from the past, many of the current era's movements are characterized by leadership in terms of numbers and are composed of different groups with different views that only have the desire for identity, democracy, human rights and the like.
Finally, one of the most important features of new social movements is their abundance, in such a way that they embrace a wide range of objectives and groups, and strongly oppose concentration and policies of unitary unity (Rahbari, 2014, p.277).

The Ordinary People's Patience
Patience to the direct actions of non-collective, continuous individuals and families to access necessities of life (land for shelter, collective urban consumption of services, informal employment, job opportunities, and public space) in a quiet and costless manner is known as the Ordinary People's Patience. This view is extracted from the observation of urban processes in the Islamic Middle East with its specific political and social structures. Thus, it can be extended to other third-world cities (Bayat, 2010, p.57). Bayat analyzed the prevalent views on this matter, offering four analyses about the interaction with the urban poor: "The Resilient Poor", "Strategy of Survival", "Urban Movement of Poor" and "Daily Resistance". The Resilient Poor: While some observers were working in the paradigm of functioning, they still viewed the urban poor as basically turbulent and accompanied by anomie. Many others perceived the poor as a politically active group that only struggle to meet their basic needs. The "Culture of Poverty" theory of Oscar Lewis gave scientific credence to this belief based on the study of poor people in Portorico and Mexico (Bayat, 2010, p.60). The Poor That Fight For Survival: The strategy of survival is an extension to this belief that though the poor lack power, they do not surrender for someone to dictate their fate, but rather, they actively strive to guarantee their survival. Therefore, to cope with unemployment or increasing prices, they usually resort to theft, begging, obscenity, or changing their consumption pattern, in response to famine or war, even if the authorities prevent them from migrating, they prefer to leave their homes. In this thinking, the poor are seen as struggling for survival; even if their survival is at the expense of their destruction or of other people (Bayat, 2010, p.61). The Political Poor: Perlman, Castells, and other Latin American scholars emphasize that the poor are not the margin, but rather are integrated into the urban culture. In their view, the poor have been pushed to the sidelines. Economically, they are exploited, politically oppressed, socially stained in their face, and culturally excluded from the social system (Bayat, 2010, pp.61-62).

The Poor's Resistance
The concept of resistance holds the idea that power and powerlessness are not in opposition, but rather in a complex, ambiguous, and permanent "dance of control". This concept is based on the Foucauldian idea that "where there is power, there is also resistance", albeit resistance is primarily composed of everyday, small-scale behaviors that agents resort to in light of their political constraints (Bayat, 2010, p.64).

A Street Named Revolution
Why do certain spaces act as a rallying point of discontent and create a sense of solidarity? What makes them different from other places? Many of the propositions about space and politics, as offered for example by Foucault, Lefebvre, and others, focus on the power (political) concentrated structure of space composition (Bayat, 2010, p.207).

Street Protests
Social protest (often in the form of street protests or demonstrations) is a public expression. Protests or dissent towards an idea or action usually have political or economic origins. Peaceful protests are part of a normal democratic society. However, social protests, especially mass street protests, are not always peaceful. In fact, they often involve some forms of civil disorder and, at times, violence, leading to disruptions in everyday life (Alsulami et al., 2022).
In terms of mobilization, inextricably linked to one spatial dimension. Therefore, to understand the causes of unrest and the participants in it, and how events unfold, we must also look at the places to which the unrest is linked. In particular, the question of why certain places, such as city streets, are more prone to public discontent than other places. Streets embody all the signs of urban and modern discontent. We should remember the role "streets" have played in decisive moments of politics such as the French Revolution, the 19 th -century labor movements, anticolonial struggles, the Vietnam War protests in the United States, Eastern European Velvet Revolutions, and maybe even the current global anti-war movement. The street is the ultimate political space for ordinary people, who are structurally excluded from centers of power. At the same time, it is a social and political space, always and simultaneously familiar and strange, visible and audible, of a complex interplay in which feelings and opinions are formed, disseminated, and in some cases, unique. The street is a physical space in which collective expression and creation take place. The spatial element in street politics distinguishes it from mere protests or sit-ins since streets are not only places where people protest, but also places where people circulate their protests into a loop. For this reason, not only marginal elements such as the poor and unemployed can be found in the streets, but also active participants to a certain extent, such as students, workers, women, state officials, and shopkeepers, whose street protests resonate with their grievances. Since a street protest brings together "claimants" as well as strangers who may have similar real or imagined grievances, it creates a sense of unity. In addition to these general features, 'protest streets' also have a specific sociology that is a mixture of multiple social-spatial features: first, these streets are spaces in which the population can easily and quickly gather before they become crowded. Secondly, protest streets usually have historical or symbolic importance; both in preserving memories of struggle and victory and like the Tahrir Square because they are symbolic places of power such as palaces, parliaments, courts, ministries of justice or interior and the like. Thirdly, protest streets are places where transportation networks, buses, taxis, or metro terminals are located, and they facilitate access to commuters. Fourthly, flexibility is also an important factor. Protest streets must be maneuverable spaces where protesters can easily escape from the police; that is, open spaces but at the same time confined with narrow alleys, shops, or houses that can provide refuge for revolutionary escapes. Finally, protest streets are also characterized by a particular sociality that creates ties, expresses dissatisfaction, and spreads news beyond clock-in groups (Bayat, 2010, pp.211-214).

Research Background
Recent years have seen research at both micro and macro levels focusing on social movements in Iran. Given the protests that took place in 1996, 1998, and the 1988 protests, most of the research conducted has taken the form of a case study of one of the recent protest movements. Sardarnia and Alborzi (2021) in their research article titled "Analysis of Recent Class-Social Protests in Iran (2016-2021) from the Perspective of Street Politics Theory" used an exploratory research method and collected data through qualitative content analysis to directly examine the claims of protesters and the views of experts on the matter. Sardarnia and Alborzi identified the most distinctive features of class-social protests in the 90s as including direct self-organization, lack of clear leadership, the influence of social networks, increased radicalism, the expansion of the blue-white workers' network, the expansion of protest chains, the social-economic nature of protests, changes in protest tactics, and the role of influential youth. They also highlighted the economic claims as the main slogan of protesters and the analysis of experts. Azad Ermaki, Jalayi Pour, and Hajali (2021) in their research titled "Emergence of Protest Population: From Urban Movements to Revolutionary Movements" stated that the revolutionary movements of reform, women, students, and the December 2016 protests arose in response to various contradictions such as social norms and the undetermined governance in different parts of society. Azad Ermaki, Jalayi Pour, and Hajali believe that the emergence of these movements has culminated in the formation of a protest population. This population is a new social force that, due to its experience of participating in a social movement, has the potential to support or participate in another movement whose claims are in line with its own experience. Hosseinpour and Rashidi (2021) in their research titled "December 96 Protests from the Perspective of Social Network Theory" used a descriptive-analytical method and secondary data to examine the impact of virtual networks on the December 96 protests. The findings of this research show that social networks in Iran, due to their high membership rate, have a noticeable impact on the intensity and scope of the December 96 protests. Thus, social networks have led to the formation of a social network society, the politicization of opposition policies, and the phenomenon of public opinion, and have been a factor in accelerating and strengthening the December 2016 protests and riots. Arb Ahmadi and Khazaei (2017) in their research titled "Social Movement and Its Impact on the Formation of Citizenship Rights" stated that one of the functions of social movements is to create new rules in society through influencing the structure of government. Thus, social movements are a platform for the formation and respect of citizenship rights and contribute to increasing public participation, political and social awareness, and the demand for rights from governments.

Niakouei (2009) in research entitled "Explaining the Phenomenon of the Second Khordad with
Utilization of Social Movement Literature" reviewing the theoretical literature on the concept of social movement, answers the question of whether the Second Khordad can be defined as a social movement. Niakouei concludes with an analytical approach that attributing titles such as revolution, electoral behavior, mass movement and political alienation to this phenomenon is not appropriate. Also, according to those definitions of social movement that emphasize the role of organization and leadership, this phenomenon cannot be considered a social movement. Only if leadership, organization, and collective action are taken into account as the fundamental features of a social movement, can this phenomenon be regarded as a social movement. Nikpey (1389) in his article "Democracy, Social Movement and Women's Rights" states that women's social movements have created changes in women's mindsets, behaviors, and living conditions in social institutions such as politics and family. One of the claims of women's social movements is the need for balance between the presence of women and men in representative institutions. In this research, various obstacles to women's presence and participation in the field of politics such as political (male domination in politics and institutions, lack of attention by parties and groups), social (poverty and unemployment, illiteracy), and cultural and psychological (cultural patterns derived from male domination, lack of women's selfconfidence) obstacles are also mentioned. Ghofari and Ghasemi (2007) in their research entitled "The Role of Urban Youth Movement in Moving towards Democracy in Iran" examine the role of the urban youth movement in the process of democratization of the political structure in the three decades of 1980-1350. Based on this, in this research, the role of the urban youth movement in the Islamic Revolution of 1358 is analyzed using the Froopashi and Electoral Presidency of 1997 models. Finally, by measuring the minimum democratic criteria in the years before and after these two transformations, it was concluded that the status of democracy in the country has improved in the years before and after this transformation.

Research Method
This pre-research aims to study and examine the role of streets in voicing the demands of protesters during the 2022 urban movement, in response to the question of freedom and equality in the streets in the protests of 2022 known as the Mahsa Movement. In this research, we used a secondary analysis method and used data and information from previous research, as well as taking advantage of scientific analyses and writings of social science experts in studying the above topic. What we are looking for in this research is how the flow of protests that started from the streets of Tehran in 2022 and then spread throughout the country, voiced freedom and equality in the streets of different cities of Iran in the slogan of "woman, life, freedom". The pre-research was conducted in a descriptive-analytical method and using documents, library sources, and results of research related to Iran's social movements, and analyzing their data and information in line with the objectives of our research.

Streets, the Arena of Protest
It is strongly objected that leads to protest, but when this protest turns into action in the streets, even though protesters know that there are costs for them, the minimum cost is that their time is taken away and they are left out of work, the higher cost is that they are exposed to social exclusion or in official interactions may be treated as unacceptable or illegal behaviors by police or judicial intervention. So when people or groups come to this stage, it means they are dissatisfied and this dissatisfaction is strong. Anyone who comes to the street means that he has no hope for other methods. He may even express his protest in other languages or express by others, but he has given up on more civil and peaceful methods and expresses his dissatisfaction by being in the street. When street protests continue, it means that there is still no hope of solving the problem. This despair can have two dimensions: one is that the protests are not heard or no action is taken to solve them and the other is that it is not certain that the protests will be heard because the door of interaction and reciprocal action is closed and the protester, about the protested, does not expect a special behavior because it is not accepted and he is the place of protest. For example, in the interaction between a buyer and a seller, the buyer is opposed to the seller why the price is high and demands a reduction in price or an increase in the quality of the goods, but the time of protest is such that it does not accept him as a seller and even protests that you do not have the qualification to sell or produce as a seller and producer and you should close your business. In simultaneous political protests, the protest is a political entity demanding change or reform, but at the same time a specific action is not defined, but rather the existence of the political entity under protest is taken and the intensity of the protests increases. When street protests also take place, the groups that come to the streets have different demands. The protest has different layers, some of the protesters do not demand a particular reform or change, but for protested, they do not say anything. Of course, not all protesters are like this, another part of the protesters who have entered the street want to make a loud voice and show a street protest to demand change.
This article can be about a demand for change in a behavr, law or even regarding an organization or institution. Therefore, those who enter the streets and protest are placed in two categories; it may be a demand for structural change or simply a way to exert more pressure to achieve the demands they are protesting about. Therefore, it is not the case that all those who enter the streets are rebels. The logic of protesting does not allow to consus ider all these protesters as rebels or to find representatives of the established authority that these protesters are all rebels. Even if the protesters perform actions that are considered illegal from the point of view of protestthe, such as breaking glass or other illegal actions, this is not necessarily a sign of rebellion but rather a strong dissatisfaction or a kind of hopelessness in relaaboutsult of the protest that is expressed in an emotionally charged behavior. So there is a wide range of protests, protests that arise from despair for reform and change, which are strong, but few in terms of demanding change in behavior and attitude. Another type of protest is one that may not be strong, such as civil protests expressed in the form of a statement, gathering, letter, tribune of freedom, etc., or like many university or student protests, which are all based on dissatisfaction, but not despair and there is hope for change and solving the problems. So here there is dissatisfaction that leads to protest, but this dissatisfaction and protest is accoareanied by hope for solving the problem that the protest is about. If some people, despite being dissatisfied, do not go to the streets and do not even make a civil protest, it does not necessarily mean that they are satisfied, but rather that there is a large population that is dissatisfied but for various reasons they do not go to the streets. One is that they are not present to pay the cost of expressing their protest. The second is that they are dissatisfied but at the same time they are hopeful that attention will be paid to the problem and that change and reform will take place, or they think that when others protest, their voice will also be heard, so there is no reason for them to pay the cost. The third is that among those who are dissatisfied and do not protest, some may not have hope for a result of the protest in addition to feeling dissatisfied, so they do not pay the cost. So here there is a passive dissatisfaction that leads to protest, but this dissatisfaction and protest is accoareanied by hope for solving the problem that the protest is about. (Hashemi, 2022, p.4).

New Policy: Street Politics
Today, the streets and public squares are places where micro-politics emerges and manifests itself. From this perspective, the street becomes a metaphorical foundation for what is assumed to be real and political. The street provides a platform for non-conformist and anti-traditional forms of protest, both individually and collectively, distancing itself from the party-based mode of protest (Tajik, 2008: 35). In another interpretation, the street in modern cities has become a site for the convergence of micro-politics and macro-politics. The street is increasingly transforming into a field of "self-expressionism" (personal experience) (Tajik, 2008, p.37).
Overall, according to Bayat, the street serves as a space for conveying emotions, dissatisfactions, symbols, standstills, collective sensitivities, common sentiments, and public thoughts, especially among the masses and urban poor who lack trust in civil and party institutions and lack support from established party institutions for their aims of reforming policies, strategies, and laws in social, economic, and service distribution spheres (Bayat, 2010, p.212). Additionally, students have played a crucial role as an intellectual guiding force in the social street movements of the urban poor. Since the mid-1980s, the negative socio-economic consequences of economic globalization and economic adjustment policies, such as the reduction or elimination of subsidies in essential areas like food, education, health, poverty, unemployment, class disparities, and inflation, have led to street protests gaining more prominence and tangible expression compared to protests within civil institutions in Arab countries and other parts of the world (Sardarnia, 2019, p.16).
Anthony Giddens specifically refers to the anti-capitalist and justice-seeking movement in Seattle against the Millennium Summit of industrialized countries in December 1999, with the participation of over 50,000 people from around the world. Seattle became a site for street protests, civil disobedience, workshops, and discussion sessions involving environmental, human rights, anti-nuclear, farmers, and small and medium-sized producers' groups (Giddens, 2011, p.104).
Manuel Castells, another important theorist in relation to social movements and street protests, emphasizes the opportunities and capacities of the "network society" and cyberspace. He sees the occupation of public urban spaces (streets and squares) by protesters, including the urban poor, marginalized classes, shop owners, civil and political activists, as a manifestation of the self-awareness of the masses and citizens to determine their own destiny and create a history of liberation from oppression, exploitation, and injustice (Castells, 1396, p.10). He sees the occupation of urban spaces by individuals and groups as a manifestation of "micro-politics" alongside macro-politics. The Internet and satellites have played a significant role in spreading street protests and facilitating global public discourse. The Internet and social networks have played an unparalleled role in organizing powerless urban masses lacking institutional structures. The Occupy Wall Street movement in the United States was a self-mobilized movement with the slogan "99% of the poor sacrificed for the 1% of the wealthy." Occupied urban spaces by empowered urban masses, utilizing the mobilization capacities of social movements and cyber-social networks, are filled with meaning, symbols, symbolic power, and aspirations for justice, equality, and resistance against authority to take real control over social life themselves. The public spaces created by social movements have a dual nature, both as symbolic cyberspace and as physical forms in streets and public squares. The selfcommunication of the masses in these public spaces has given rise to a powerful global social movement, harmonizing global public discourse to confront the forces of exploitation and economic and political power in the era of globalization (Castells, 2016, pp.19-17).
The first experience of the Iranian people in entering the streets outside official ceremonies was a significant turning point in their familiarity with the street. This occurred after the spontaneous celebrations following Iran's victory against Australia in 1997, when people poured into the streets. Additionally, similar events were observed in Iran from the second half of the 1990s. During this relatively short period, Iranian streets became the arena for political, economic, and social struggles, and they had much to say. The "street," with its most explicit and tangible expression, tells us that the masses, unlike the past, are not condemned to remain on the sidelines of politics, passive, indifferent, and merely spectators. Rather, they have become active actors in the social and political arena, challenging governments by continuously expressing their economic, professional, and class demands. The street tells us where the decision-makers have become one-sided and disconnected from the citizens and urban poor, where they have taken steps towards a dead-end, deviated from the right path, and lost their way (Tajik, 2007, p.35).
After the jubilation of Iran's victory against Australia in 1976, a turning point was reached in the people's entry into the street outside of official ceremonies and a point of familiarity with the street. Normally, the street is something unfamiliar and strange. As soon as one enters the street, the stress begins. The street is, in fact, the government's domain. The division of public space into pedestrians-streets, the continuation of the government-people separation. The pedestrian belongs to the people and the street belongs to the government. If the police are occasionally present in the estrian, they are always patrolling in the eet. The only time one can enter the "street domain" is when the government has issued a permit; in official government ceremonies, in parades or in suitable ceremonies, in any event that is officially specified. Outside of such ceremonies, presence in the street requires the "permission" of the government; because presencthe e in the street is a violation of the domain of the government and policy. Nobody expected Iran to win in the game against Australia. Iran's victory over Australia was an "exceptional event". There was chaos in the existing order. A moment of exception. The "global" order was in favor of the "Iranian". The rules of the world were assimilated, and the national rules were also forgotten. The government-people separation was removed in a moment. In this moment, the "victory" in which the government (as the representative of the collective mind) and the people (as the representative of the collective feeling) were one, the mind and the feeling were one, and the pedestrian and the street were one. People saw themselves in the middle of the street in one. People had exceeded the domain of the government and policy unknowingly. In this moment, a new "people" was created who was not limited to the pedestrian who was the opener of the street. The street was revealed and it is better to say that a new street was created and with it a new enthusiasm was created which had no stress of the street. Since then, the street has been out of the government's hands alone and has become a shared field of government and people (still the street can be a shared field of government and people). Since then, after every victory, people have returned to the street without any importance and have transferred their private behaviors to the public arena. The field of men and women was in the street. What was done only in the interiors of the house before was now brought to the middle of the street. The police were protecting the security of the people and were spectators of their joy. The meaning of the street and the meaning of the people were both changing and a new people and government were created that could share the street together. After that, people came to the street for various non-football reasons.  (Fisher et al., 2019).
The combination of people and streets creates an exceptional situation in which new people are created. The 2022 movement was a pivot point in this "street turn" of politics (similar to the "linguistic turn" in philosophy). After the upheaval, it is no longer the same old politics. The ownership of the streets in this movement creates a field of politics from scratch. Politics is no longer just implemented through representative mechanisms such as voting and elections, but direct intervention and participation of people in street realities is also added to it and its potential is to create a new government and people that will be partners in the streets again (Kolahi, 2022).
The masses and protesting citizens, in an increasingly desperate and distrustful atmosphere towards civil and trade organizations, have turned the streets into the main hub for expressing their demands, primarily economic and livelihood-related, in order to prove their existence, influence their own destiny, and improve their quality of life. These demands cannot be disconnected from political demands, which come second after economic and livelihood demands. They stem from corruption, inefficiency, and dissatisfaction with the current political situation, as the cause of the unfavorable economic conditions and the discrimination or class divisions between the lower and middle classes, in contrast to the affluent classes. In fact, the effective space of street protests in recent years, predominantly spontaneous, chain-like, and continuous, may have been influenced by the international atmosphere of street protests, especially the "99% versus 1%" movement in the United States and the "Yellow Vest" movement in France. According to the scholars of the Chicago School, we should learn from these street protests and find a significant portion of their pains and solutions through street activism. These recent street protests can be seen as a representation of their historicity and direction, as Allen Touraine puts it, through the workers and trade unions, a sense of being and influence, or the power to determine for the working class to guide their demands and shift their presence from the political margins to the core of politics in an atmosphere of despair, stagnation, conservatism, and dysfunctionality of institutional, civil, and trade organizations perceived by these groups. In this regard, improving the quality of life and ending social and economic discrimination have been of the highest priority in the demonstration of their presence on the streets. This issue can also be analyzed in line with Anthony Giddens' theory of "life politics" and its emancipatory nature (Sardarania and Alborzi, 2022, p.8).
The Nature of the 2022 Movement in general terms, the recent protests can be referred to as a "collective protest action". Collective action is a broad and inclusive concept that refers to any type of collective activity by all or part of a society. The mental concept of collective action includes awareness of the mutual behavior of people who match their behavior with that of others (Jenson, 1363). The most important collective protest actions can be referred to as rebellion, revolution or uprising, and movement. Therefore, although it is possible to use the term "collective protest action" for the protests after the death of Mahesh Amini, it should be noted that this term distinguishes the protest from individual protest and therefore, for a precise understanding of the nature of these protests, we should resort to other concepts (Madani, 2022, p.7). Movement Movement is a term for a structured collective protest action aimed at defending, expanding or achieving a specific goal or goals. Allen Turner has three characteristics for any movement: 1) Identity, that is, every movement must have an identity. The embodiment of identity means that the protest action gradually becomes a spokesperson or representative of the entire society of protesters or specific groups such as women, workers, the poor and the homeless, or other social groups. Therefore, any collective action that answers questions such as, who is the identity? Who is shouting and protesting in the name of? And what are the defenders and guardians of? Is included in the list of social movements. 2) The principle of opposition or opposition; Social movements are always against another force and confront it (violent or non-violent). Although social rebellions have a critical and negative attribute, social movements draw a more precise boundary in this regard. 3) And universality. These values determine the movement (Madani, 2022, p.8).

The Demand for Freedom and Equality in the Mahsa Movement
Although the protests in the wake of the death of Mahsa Amini were not unexpected for some, the persistence of protests for several months, the widening of the scope and the intensity of protests, as well as changes in the pattern of protests have made many oblivious and unaware; including the fact that a part of the protests of women and girls against gender discrimination and the compulsory veil, which has been maintained in various forms, suddenly became a noticeable and effective action for the "inaction of women" and the "women's movement" collective protest; while due to the traditional structure in Sistan and Baluchestan, the political and social presence of women has generally been met with great obstacles, according to some evidence, the participation of women and girls in recent protests has been surprisingly higher than that of men. Also, the youth movement, which has always been involved in the form of student or school movement alongside collective protests and other social groups, has found a pivotal and determining role in recent protests and has had a powerful effect on their behavior and patterns (Madani, 2022, p.9). Many intellectuals believe that after the protests of Agustu 2022, which was called the "Mahsa Movement" and the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom" was announced, the country has become in a state of "political deadlock". The wall of mistrust between the government and the people has been higher than any other time in the last four decades. Deep crises in the fields of economy, culture, politics, society and environment have become brighter than ever and have become an obstacle to achieving "sustainable development". A large part of those who assisted this movement came to the streets or participated in protest gatherings outside the country; they were revolutionaries. The main demand of them, according to the testimony of their action, was freedom and equality. Their main slogan, which was a combination of woman, life and freedom, was in line with the demand for the overthrow of the religious government and the establishment of a secular government. Generation Z in this protest movement, which had colorful sides of women and gave the smell of life, had a colorful presence. This movement, which demanded civil and citizenship rights, started in the streets and continued. The revolutionaries, in their political behavior, did not refer to recognized political figures. Generally, they were diverse and deeply embraced different lifestyles and recognized them officially; neither "religious fanatics" nor "religious secularists", but rather a strong critic of "religious government" and "political Islam" (Dabbagh, 2022). Life is the same progress and development; that is, "woman-life-freedom" in the slogan. Emphasis on women is the same demand for equality and the elimination of discrimination and the elimination of symbolic and structural violence and the elimination of the masculine sense of domination over the body of women, a more inclusive situation than equality that shows itself in Iran; due to its population size and demography, 50% of the population of Iran are women and live in unequal conditions. It is this population size that makes it a demand, while it has the same demands as the previous generations, and as a result, these generations have these visions in their social and cultural unawareness, from chest to chest and transfer these visions. Freedom is the same freedom that two generations of Iranian transformation seekers have been searching for (Farasakhah, 2022).

The Domain of the Mahsa Movement
In the previous protest cycles that occurred in the years 88, 96 and 98, according to the central demand of the protesters, protests were held in certain areas of cities such as poor neighborhoods and outskirts, central areas or places related to the middle class. For example, in the protests of Aban 98, the presence of protesters in the outskirts of cities was prominent and in the Green Movement, more presence of protesters in the centers of cities was witnessed; but in the Mahsa Movement we witnessed the presence of protesters in different urban areas. For example, in Tehran from Tajrish to Naze'abad and from Ekbatan to Haft Baghoor, gatherings and confrontations of protesters with the authorities were reported. The youth movement is class-based and, taking into account the presence and extensive role of young age groups in this movement, it can explain the geographical diversity of protests (Madani, 2022, p.11). On December 25, 1389, in response to the Green Movement's invitation to express solidarity with the protests of Tunisians and Egyptians, gatherings were held in a number of major cities. In the protests of Aban 1398, the number of cities in which protest gatherings were held increased to about 100. But in the recent protests, the domain of protests not only expanded to major cities of the country, but also small and even medium cities joined the protesters and gatherings and confrontations were reported in them. For example, the dimensions of protest in cities such as Saqqez, Marivan, Amol, Babol, Semnan, Lordegan, Sabzevar and Neyshabur were less than in major cities and especially in provincial centers. Given the similar policy that the government has adopted in response to the recent year's protests, repression of protesters and ignoring the demands of civil claimants and protesters, it is clear that these movements will soon become silent and quiet. But the silence of these protests does not mean solving the problem or eliminating the factors and causes of the protests. Accordingly, as long as structural crises play a determining role in the re-emergence of dissatisfaction and protest, the cycle of protests will continue in Iran. Therefore, from the silence of the current protests, we should expect the next wave of protests. The next wave of protest is similar and parallel to the current cycle of protest; that is, the next wave of protest will have a wider geographical domain and the course of protests will move from major cities to smaller cities. In addition, the next wave of protests will be more radical and probably more aggressive (Madani, 2022, p.27). The central demand of the recent protests was "social freedom" with emphasis on lifestyle and compulsory hijab. Given the continuation of economic crisis, the central demand of the next protests will probably be "bread" and in this way the necessary motivation for the presence of different strata and groups of people, especially the poor, will be provided.

Conclusion
Civil disobedience and presence in the streets are forms of protest in conditions of discontent, social and economic deprivation. In protest of such conditions, a chain of unity among protesters is formed on the streets, corresponding to the type, intensity and goal of the protest of the protesters and the response of the government to it. One of these protests was the August 2022 Iran protest. These protests initially responded to the murder of Ma'soomeh Amini and the social restrictions on women in Iran and then were accompanied by other economic and political issues of the country. An important note about these protests is that their place of formation is the streets. Azfa Bayat, by introducing the theory of "street politics", considers the main motives for the formation of street protests to be the globalisation of economy, the revolution of communication and the wrong economic policies of governments. According to him, the streets are a platform for expressing dissatisfaction of certain classes that are devoid of institutional formations and self-organize in the streets. Among these classes, one can refer to the lower city classes, the unemployed, the ignorant and housewives women. Bayat also counts students as a mental steering force in social protests in the streets. Thus, street politics involves purposeful interactions between people in social and physical spaces of the streets. The basis of these interactions is the active use of these spaces by people who have the sole right to use them beneficially. This issue angers the authorities. Again, street politics is an act of making the street a medium of connection between people. In other words, the street can convert a small protest into a cohesive show of mutual benefit and shared feelings. This issue makes the concept of street politics and the reason for the occurrence of social movements in the streets clear. Based on these definitions and also taking into account the concept of collective action, the August 2022 protests can be named a protest movement under the title of "Ma'soumeh Movement" or "Women, Life, Freedom" movement. In this movement, phenomena such as the sustainability of protests for several months, the presence of a large number of women and girls, the pivotal role of youth in the form of student or schoolboy protests are noteworthy. According to the views of intellectuals, the main demands of this movement are freedom and equality, which are highlighted by the slogan "Women, Life, Freedom". In other words, these protests are civil, the rights of citizenship are violated and they are demanding solutions to deep crises in the fields of economy, culture, politics, society and environment. The Ma'soumeh movement has found a wide range of other protests that have occurred in Iran in recent years. This movement was not only present in the big cities of the country, but also found its way to medium and small cities and villages, and was recognized as a cross-class and all-encompassing movement. The policy that always governs against protests is a policy of suppression, disregard and deterrence of protesters. Therefore, protests such as the Ma'soumeh movement, after a period of low-intensity and silence, become silent. But it should be noted that the silence of these protests does not mean their end, because with the continuity of structural crises, the expectation of a new wave of protests must always be there in a more radical and attended form by more groups of people.