A few years back, the part-time hairdresser turned community activist transformed her shabby apartment into a library for women, collecting secondhand books to fill the makeshift bookshelves in her living room.
For Gohari, helping the teen became a mission, one of many. She scoured the city for the study books, relatively cheap by Western standards but a fortune for Iran’s poor.
“She was ashamed because she couldn’t afford the books,” Gohari said.
The older woman put her hand out to the girl. “I said, ‘Study here.’ ” And then Gohari handed her the books.
