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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - The Los Angeles City Council agreed Tuesday to designate the intersection of Westwood Boulevard and Rochester Avenue as "Women Life Freedom Square" in honor of Mahsa Amini, who died as a result of physical abuse inflicted upon her by the Iranian government's Morality Police.
The council approved the motion in a unanimous vote. The Department of Transportation will design and install the signs at the intersection located in the heart of Little Tehran in Westwood.
"This Saturday marks the one-year anniversary since Mahsa Amini died following complications of physical abuse, which she sustained while in custody in the back of a police truck in Tehran, Iran," Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, who introduced the motion, said prior to the vote.
The Iranian government's Morality Police arrested Amini for allegedly wearing her hijab loosely, a violation of Iran's "strict dress codes," she said.
Amini's death sparked outrage, protests and sparked a nation-wide movement in Iran.
"While her death was horrific, it was not in vain. In the one year since Mahsa's death, millions of women in Iran and millions more across the globe have stood up and protested the oppressive Islamic regime," Yaroslavsky said. "Hundreds of women have been murdered, and hundreds more are at risk of execution. Yet, these women have not backed down."
Yaroslavsky repeated the protest slogan "Zan, Zendegi, Azadi," which translates to "Women, Life, Freedom," the rallying cry affirming that the rights of women are at the center of life and liberty.
The councilwoman, whose 5th District includes Westwood, said the renaming of the intersection will send a clear message that "Los Angeles will always stand in solidarity with these brave women, the people of Iran, and calls upon the (Iranian) government to end this political violence."