How often do you come across videos of women dancing on your social media feeds? Probably, frequently, if not every day. Like millions of other Iranians and people all over the globe, 18-year-old Maedeh Hojabri shared photos and videos of herself on Instagram. She also gained a significant amount of followers but was recently arrested in Iran for posting a video of her dancing in her bedroom.

I am sure you would have read that line again. The news is as bizarre as it can be. In most countries, an attractive young woman such as Hojabri, who combines a strong camera presence with impressive dance moves, might have been picked for a television talent competition show but a complete opposite happened in Iran.

A teenage dancer posting videos online should be the least of Iran problems, considering the fact that the Iranian establishment is confronting a host of urgent issues: a collapsing currency; continuing sanctions squeeze; a water shortage of epic proportions; and widespread protests over the state’s inability to solve these problems.

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Why did this happen, you may be wondering. Dancing is not completely illegal in Iran, but it is forbidden for women to do it publicly. According to the New York Times, with more than 600,000 followers on her Instagram, Hojabri uploaded her dancing videos on the social media platform. She was arrested two months ago.

But controlling gender inequality has been an obsession for Iran since the Islamic Republic came into power in 1979. And now the establishment is obviously losing that 40-year war of attrition.

The authorities went on to shame her publicly by broadcasting a confession on television. Or at least they thought they were doing that. While the authorities hoped Hojabri’s public shaming would dissuade others from committing such “crimes” in the future, the campaign seems to have ignited a backlash against the government.

Shortly after her appearance, Iranian men and women used several platforms to upload videos of themselves dancing in a show of solidarity with the teen. Thousands more posted images of Hojabri and messages of support under the hashtags “dancing isn’t a crime” and “dance to freedom.”

Explaining this revolt, Alex Vatanka, an expert at The Middle East Institute (MEI) told The Media Line that “Iranian society is far more liberal than the Iranian regime.”

He explained that the country’s secular-minded population is ruled by one of the world’s last remaining theocracies. “There is a group of 60 plus men at the top of the pyramid in Iran who are religious and traditional, and they call the shots in terms of what is decent and what should be allowed.”

Given the advances that Iranian women have made in the years, their discontent will inevitably play a major role in the system’s undoing. It’s an open secret that everyone in that country knows, but few are willing to discuss.