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Date Posted: 21:15:14 02/15/08 Fri
Author: Jeannine
Subject: My Saudi Arabia women story - for what it is worth
In reply to: Jeannine 's message, "This is not a blue/red issue - as Muppy pointed out - and not just in Saudi" on 16:50:16 02/14/08 Thu

In 19 hundred and 91 (old fogey enough?) or so, I was in Al Jubal, SA and staying in a very nice hotel. (I was the aide to a Commodore, sort of personal sec). I was in full camo uniform and went to the elevator to go up to my room. When the doors opened, it was full of Saudi women - 8 or 9 of them - in full black cover - not even their mouths were visible. I was a little taken aback, but got into the elevator. The MINUTE the doors closed, those women whipped back their veils and started shooting questions to me right and left. They asked "are you married?" "do you have children" "have you slept with more than one man?" "what do you do for fun?" "do you go out and party at night?" and a bunch of other questions... it was very overwhelming!

I barely had time to answer even one question - then, we got to some floor and the doors opened and they (seemingly)magically were covered again and filed out of the elevators.

That made such a HUGE impression on me! It was one of the most amazing and somewhat wacky and surreal experiences of my life. To this day, I always feel like they were asking me - what is it like to be free? and they had to leave before they found out. Not to sound too dramatic, but it was life-changing for me.

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Replies:

[> [> [> Thank you for sharing that! I work at a college where there are -- LAwoman, 13:22:24 02/16/08 Sat [1]

many Muslim women students. Some have told me stories of how their parents fled their home countries (ones that were becoming increasingly oppressive) with next to nothing just so their daughters could get an education. And believe me, those are some of our best and most dedicated students.


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[> [> [> That's an awesome story Jeannine... -- muppetmel, 17:51:48 02/17/08 Sun [1]

... and what a visual! I can just picture them all excited and chatty one minute, and then walking out completely covered and silent.

It kind of breaks your heart that there is so much suppressed creativity, intelligence and natural interest.

So here's my Saudi Arabia story .. actually it's not *my* story; it was told to me by an RN, who spent two years in Saudi Arabia I think in the 80s. They used to recruit North American nurses like crazy (maybe they still do) because they didn't have enough of them and they paid extremely well. Quite a number of RNs took short-term contracts of two years or so.

This particular nurse said they were instructed on how to act in Saudi Arabia so as not to get in trouble with the religious police. They were told essentially to stay confined to their living abodes and strongly encouraged not to mix and mingle with the natives, and to pay attention to how they dressed in public.

On one occasion she and another nurse were in the market. She purchased an orange juice from a vendor and was immediately stopped and arrested for "drinking alcohol and unseemingly behaviour in public."

She and the other nurse both got lashes. I don't remember how many, and I don't remember why they lashed the other nurse. Pretty scary stuff though.


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[> [> [> [> Yours is kind of like mine. -- HF, 19:31:27 02/17/08 Sun [1]

In college, my good friend's father worked for a company that transferred the family to Saudi Arabia. When she would spend the summers there, she was told to keep to herself as much as possible and to always stay covered from head to toe. She would drive around town with some of her Saudi friends and the way the girls would meet boys (because you couldn't talk to them) was to go "cruising" with the car windows partially down. The boys would throw cassette tapes into the opening and then drive off. The messages would have phone numbers that the girls could call if they wanted to go cruising again the next week. If they ever got caught actually meeting up, they would get in severe trouble. The boys were not at fault at all of course.


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[> [> [> [> [> Thanks for sharing your stories! -- doni, 09:07:00 05/06/08 Tue [1]

They are all so amazing to this brazen woman! lol

I'd read about that cruising and throwing tapes out the window, in National Geographic. It kind of warms my heart the kids are using 'new' technology to try and break free.

Somewhere, I read that in an Internet society, it is impossible to uphold a dictatorship...I hope that turns out to be true, in the long run.

One thing I've always been just the slightest bit jealous of...With the veil, you can walk out of your house, any way you wish! LOL No make up...You could be wearing sweats underneath, with no bra...Nobody will ever know! Maybe I'm lazy, but I do like that aspect.

In the same story I read about the kids cruising around, I read many Arab women would not give up the veil, even if they were not required to wear it. I just bet they would not wear them 24/7, outdoors, as they do now...no matter what they say.


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