Iran’s needy get winter clothes from ‘Walls of Kindness’

In this Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016 photo, an Iranian woman walks past clothes hung on hooks at an outdoor charity wall marked, "Wall of Kindness," next to a subway station entrance in central Tehran, Iran. As a brutal winter set in across Iran, anonymous philanthropists throughout the country painted “Walls of Kindness” and installed rows of hooks, inviting passers-by to leave warm clothes if they could spare them or take clothes if they need them. Writing in Farsi at left and right reads, "If you don't need it, put it here. If you need it, take it." (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi) In this Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016 photo, an Iranian woman walks past clothes hung on hooks at an outdoor charity wall marked, "Wall of Kindness," next to a subway station entrance in central Tehran, Iran. As a brutal winter set in across Iran, anonymous philanthropists throughout the country painted “Walls of Kindness” and installed rows of hooks, inviting passers-by to leave warm clothes if they could spare them or take clothes if they need them. Writing in Farsi at left and right reads, "If you don't need it, put it here. If you need it, take it." (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

By Associated Press January 10, 2016 3 min read

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – As a brutal winter set in across Iran, anonymous philanthropists throughout the country painted “Walls of Kindness” and installed rows of hooks, inviting passers-by to leave warm clothes if they could spare them or take clothes if they need them.

The unique variation on the take-a-penny, leave-a-penny jar provides winter clothes to the homeless while sparing them the shame that can come from having to beg for help. Pictures of the brightly painted walls have been circulated on social media, helping to spread the initiative.

Dozens of walls have popped up across Iran, and at least one philanthropist has taken things a step further, setting up a refrigerator outdoors and inviting people to leave or take food.

“This signifies compassion toward one another,” Mehrangiz Tavassoli said after hanging a wool sweater on a wall in central Tehran. “In the past, I did not know what to do with donations. Now, those who need can take what they want.”

Tehran has a homeless population of around 15,000 people, a third of them women, according to government figures. Winters can be brutally cold, with snowstorms sweeping in from the surrounding mountains. This year has been particularly icy, with temperatures frequently dropping to below freezing.