Lori Falce: Iranian woman's death latest in list of human rights abuses

I get lists and rankings in my inbox every day.

They tell me what states or cities or schools or businesses are the best and worst according to a myriad of factors. Most money. Least education. Highest unemployment. Lowest cost of living. Best quality of life. Worst opportunity for advancement.

We measure countries according to a robust economy or a standing army. We judge based on birth rate and life span. You name it and I can probably find you a study that tells you why a particular area is good or bad or just hanging out in the middle.

But what is hard to measure is the reality that you were probably taught in kindergarten or maybe Sunday school or perhaps by a mom who reprimanded you or a grandma who comforted you.

The best measure of any society — or person — is not in what they have or how high they climb on a ranking. It is how they treat others.

There are always cruelties, big or small, that pop up in any community. It is whether those actions are abhorred, accepted or advocated that makes the difference.

Right now, one of the most prominent examples in the world is the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in Iran. It is a brutal truth of life that young women die every day everywhere at the hands of fathers, lovers, husbands and strangers. But Amini died in custody of “morality police” for the crime of a few strands of hair peeking out from her veil.

For that infraction, she was beaten savagely in the head. Her family saw her skull punched as she was taken away in a car. Family told CNN that she was admitted to the hospital with brain damage.

But what makes the case more than your average assault is it came with the approval of the government, which has denied any improper treatment and claims Amini died of a heart attack due to an undiagnosed cardiac condition.

No. Iran has a very much diagnosed misogyny condition.

Iranian women were part of the February 1979 revolution that overthrew the shah and led to the country becoming an Islamic religious nation. They were women dressed very much like women in New York or Pittsburgh at the time.

A month later, the ayatollah decreed all women must wear hijab — a head and sometimes face and body covering that many observant Muslims choose to don. The demand was an immediate signal that women were not to be afforded the same rights or protections as men.

Any time one group of people is singled out for different treatment than others, a society is making a statement. America did so when it declared its freedom while enshrining slavery, and we struggle with the fallout still. China does it today with its treatment of groups like the Uyghurs and the religious group Falun Gong. Around the globe, countries oppress the rights of women, other races, non-state religions and LGBTQ individuals aggressively and openly.

In a world where nations depend upon our interactions to keep partnerships and economic health intact, we must find a way to hold each other to account for egregious human rights violations instead of what we have historically done — dance around issues for fear of offense.

It is hard for America as a nation to make some moves because of those global power scales — and tipping those in the Middle East is always volatile. But the American people can and should raise their voices in support — including amplifying the calls for justice from Iranian women.

Do you think maybe it needs a list? Well there is one. And the horrifying thing is that on Concern Worldwide US’s list of the worst countries for women, Iran doesn’t even make the top 10.