Iranian author and former prisoner of conscience Marina Nemat explains how her country’s vibrant civil society was destroyed by the Islamic revolution in 1979. While Iranians were still able to openly discuss social and political changes immediately after the revolution, the Islamic Republic quickly imposed a series of draconian laws that outlawed any criticism of the government, as well as any activities considered offensive to Islam. Nemat describes how her opposition to these laws led to her imprisonment in Iran’s notorious Evin prison. Despite enduring two years of torture “designed to break the human soul,” Nemat has never stopped fighting for a free Iran and serves as a vocal advocate for those who cannot speak for themselves.