In 1979 decreed that all women must wear the dress (hijab) at work. Dr. Darabi refused, and for a long time her unique status protected her. Then in 1990, the government transferred her to Iman Hussein Hospital. Its director, one of Dr. Darabi’s former students, was a strict fundamentalist who insisted that she wear the hijab, according to her sister. Dr. Darabi refused, saying that it was too difficult for her to examine a patient while she was swathed in so much material. As a result she was dismissed from her position.
