The Take Remembering 2022: Iran’s Gen Z army and hashtag wars
Jan 16, 2026
Holly Dagres, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council focusing on Iran, joins Marc Owen Jones, an expert on digital disinformation. They dive into the bold protests led by Gen Z in Iran following Mahsa Amini's death, highlighting how young activists smartly harnessed social media. Discussion includes the human cost of these protests with tragic accounts of young vloggers, the rise of hashtag wars, and the challenges posed by government censorship. They also explore the complexities of online narratives and the importance of following credible sources.
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Gen Z Turned Social Posts Into Street Protests
- Gen Z in Iran used social media to amplify Mahsa Amini's death and push protests from online into the streets.
- Their familiarity with TikTok and Instagram helped young women lead daring public acts despite severe risks.
Young Women Fronted The Most Visible Defiance
- Iranian teenage girls led many of the most visible acts of defiance, publicly removing hijabs and mocking regime symbols.
- These actions signaled a generational rejection of the Islamic Republic's social restrictions.
Partial Internet Controls, Not A Full Blackout
- Iran implemented selective, secretive internet restrictions that made access intermittent but stopped short of a total 2019 blackout.
- Those limits complicated VPN use and raised costs for influencers who rely on online income.