Women athletes in hijabs: religious expression or religious oppression?

A reminder from the Guardian (h/t Towleroad) that until women in Iran are free to choose their dress, it is laughable for high-minded organizations, including so-called women's rights organizations, to defend the Iranian regime's demands that women athletes compete in religious garb. The Gospels, the Torah, the Koran may be rules of life for some, but they aren't the rules of sport. And when men tell women how to dress on the basis of "religion", that is not freedom, that is sexist oppression.

Thousands of special forces have been deployed in Tehran's streets, participating in the regime's "moral security plan" in which loose-fitting headscarves, tight overcoats and shortened trousers that expose skin will not be tolerated for women, while men are warned against glamorous hairstyles and wearing a necklace.

The new plan comes shortly after the Iranian parliament proposed a bill to criminalise dog ownership, on the grounds that it "poses a cultural problem, a blind imitation of the vulgar culture of the west".

The Irna state news agency said the trend was aimed at combating "the western cultural invasion" with help from more than 70,000 trained forces, known as "moral police", who are sent out to the streets in the capital and other cities.

With the summer heat sweeping across the country, many people, especially the young, push the boundaries and run the risk of being fined, or even arrested, for wearing "bad hijab" clothing.

Women in particular are under more pressure because of the restriction on them to cover themselves from head to toe. Men are allowed to wear short-sleeved shirts, but not shorts.