Selena Gomez has shared her solidarity with five “courageous” Iranian girls who were arrested for dancing to her song Calm Down.
The track, a collaboration between her and Nigerian rapper Rema, has been widely shared on social media with many fans posting videos of themselves dancing to the hit.
Last week, it was reported that five teenage girls were detained by Iran’s morality police after posting a clip of themselves wearing their hair down while performing a routine to the track to coincide with International Women’s Day.
The Islamic republic enforces strict laws regarding dancing, particularly for women and girls, as well as a requirment to wear a hijab.
The teenagers were arrested shortly after their video went viral when police located the tower block in Ekbatan, Tehran, where it was filmed.
As reported by Twitter account Shahrak Ekbatan, the girls were held for two days and forced to confess on camera to their “crimes” with their hair covered by a hijab. It’s unclear whether they have been able to return home.
To all the beautiful women who are fighting for a better world, I’m inspired by you, I sing for you and I dream with you. ✊🏿🤍🇮🇷 https://t.co/sOCQjZnlpB
— REMA (@heisrema) March 14, 2023
Following the reports, the singers behind the track have shared their support for the teenagers and said “their strength is inspiring”.
Gomez, 30, shared a news article about the girls on her Instagram Story and wrote alongside it: “[Love] to these young women and all the women of Iran who continue to be courageous demanding fundamental changes.
“Please know your strength is inspiring.”
Taking to Twitter, Rema, 22, penned alongside a clip of the girls dancing: “To all the beautiful women who are fighting for a better world, I’m inspired by you, I sing for you and I dream for you.”
Their detention has been condemned internationally.
Following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini last September for allegedly violating Iran’s Islamic dress code, which requires women to wear a hijab, citizens have been opposing the strict religious regime.
Countless protests over issues affecting women and girls — such as domestic violence, abortion and strict dress code laws — have taken place following the incident.
