Andra Bryan Stefanoni: Women’s night with Saudi students an eye-opener

[Mosamania]

Andra Bryan Stefanoni: Women’s night with Saudi students an eye-opener

PITTSBURG, Kan. — Living in a town with a large international student population, I frequently see Middle Eastern women out and about — noticeable for being covered by burqas and hijabs, even in the heat of Pittsburg summers.

I usually experience some trepidation over what they might be thinking of me: a short-haired, T-shirt and blue jean-wearing American.

I have considered what their lives might be like, wondered about their oppression. But I never really paused to picture them as women underneath the cloth.

Friday night, that changed.

At the invitation of my future sister-in-law, I joined dozens of other locals for a women’s night put on by the 60-some Saudi women of Pittsburg State University. They worked all week to prepare an elaborate spread of tastes from their homeland, and they had created PowerPoints and short speeches to inform us.

No men or photographs were allowed.

What I saw, heard and learned absolutely floored me.

The women appeared without burqas and hijabs, wearing instead beautiful and colorful Western dresses that revealed legs, arms and radiant faces.

They were funny, intelligent, full of life. Vivacious, I’d say. Not at all like the women as I saw them in the grocery stores.

Friday night, they made it clear that what they wear and do is by choice, not by oppression. The organizer, a charismatic Saudi woman named Mashael Almowallad, said they don’t want men to measure their worth by appearances — their hair, their bosom, the line of their neck — but for what matters.

Women’s rights are improving in Saudi Arabia, they say, and women now make up 62 percent of all Saudis enrolled in higher education. These women are studying here on stipends from their government, enrolled in fields of study as diverse as human relations, political science and business. They have dreams and aspirations of careers and making a difference when they return home.

The similarities between “them” and “us” were more striking than the differences: They love fancy desserts, and they served us trays of them before serving the meal.

They enjoy dancing and music, and they clapped and twirled with smiles and enthusiasm.

They love shopping and gossip.

They appreciate the pomp and circumstance of weddings, demonstrated in a skit about a Saudi couple first courting, then proceeding to the eventual bride throwing her bouquet to outstretched arms of single women.

The goal of the evening, Almowallad said, was to break down barriers. I think it worked. In the end, we all had the time of our lives and were inspired to plan future women’s nights.

And my short hair, T-shirts and blue jeans, and driving habits, don’t offend them as I once thought. “You are you, and I am me,” Almowallad said with a smile, “but we are both women.”

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The Entire world media from west to east is demonizing Saudi Arabia and spreading lies and propaganda everywhere about us. To the point where even "Saudis are Human too" is an "Eye-Opener" and a "Huge surprise".

---------- Post added at 04:23 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:22 PM ----------

Andra Bryan Stefanoni: Women

 

[Mosamania]

Dispatches from Saudi Arabia: the case for cross-cultural collaboration

Just as Saturday's sun was coming up, we arrived at King Khaled International Airport in Riyadh. As part of a small delegation travelling with the UK's minister for universities and science, David Willetts, I was well aware of the strict adherence to certain cultural mores that prevailed in Saudi Arabia following my visit to King Faisal Hospital in Jeddah the previous year.

Here I was, however, travelling to the very heart of the kingdom watching a French woman opposite me struggling into her voluminous black abayah as the plane entered its final descent. I knew the British Council had organised for an abayah to be waiting in the hotel but it was the first of many surprises on our 24-hour visit to hear from a fellow female traveller that while it was of course important to show respect for the local culture in Riyadh I would find a more relaxed attitude than I might expect.

Alighting from the plane the slightly crumpled accompanying delegation was whisked through airport formalities. Our group included Professor Eric Thomas, vice-chancellor of Bristol University and president of Universities UK, Dr Joanna Newman, director of UK Higher Education International Unit, and Martin Dole, chief executive of the Association of Colleges, ably supported by Maddalaine Ansell of the Department of Business Innovation and Skills.

The very first thing that we all saw as we left the airport was the Princess Nora Bint Abdulrahman University, majestically rising from the desert. This, the largest university for women in the world, has the capacity to educate 40,000 female students on a purpose-built campus covering 14sq km with its own monorail system. A visit to it later in the day was the reason for my inclusion in the party as a female UK vice-chancellor. Although the university for women has had a long history producing generations of female teachers, this impressive campus development championed by the king will educate the next generation of women leaders and professionals for the nation across a wide range of disciplines: from health to education, business and social work.

It is an extraordinarily powerful symbol of Saudi Arabia's commitment to the higher education and future employment of its women in a nation full of contradictions. While more than 50% of Saudi undergraduates are female only 13.5% are employed, the lowest rate in the world, and 20% of women are illiterate compared to 13% of men. Women will be able to vote in local elections from 2015 and there is clearly a commitment to changing their position in society, although the pace of change will be measured. The female UK delegation, suitably attired in abayahs, arrived in the middle of the day for our much-anticipated visit to the university. We were ushered inside and, now in an all-female environment, the abayahs were quickly shrugged off. We were privileged to meet Dr Huda Mohammed Saleh Al-Ameel, the rector of the university, and her impressive top team of vice-rectors and administrators.

Dr Huda is a leader of intellect with an obvious passion for education and a desire to create the best university for the teaching of women in the world. Her team's energy, commitment and enthusiasm was infectious and they were frustrated that visits in recent years to the UK to seek partnerships to help them grow their curriculum, improve their quality assurance arrangements and upskill their staff with master's and PhD qualifications had largely fallen on stony ground. We in the west may not find it easy to accept the restrictions that limit the opportunities for women in Saudi Arabia, but my visit certainly taught me that change is in the air. Perhaps we should not be so reluctant to work in partnership with leaders like Dr Huda, to support her in her educational task within her country. Perhaps for too long we have stayed at home expecting Saudi students to come to us.

And they do come to us in very large numbers. We have more than 20,000 students from Saudi Arabia in the UK at the present time, 16,000 on a special King Abdullah Scholarship programme. During his short visit, the very first of a UK minister for universities to the kingdom, David Willetts worked graciously and tirelessly to promote our higher education sector, its diversity and the quality of our further education colleges. In return, the Saudi minister for higher education expressed his desire for a greater commitment to collaboration, for more research and knowledge transfer agreements between our universities and for assistance in promoting world-class teaching.

There is no doubting the affinity between our nations, unexpectedly captured in an emotional exchange I had over lunch with a woman from the ministry. She described how, after entering the US after 9/11 with her three young children to resume her PhD studies at a university in Kansas, she had been treated with such aggression, hostility and distaste that she feared for her children's safety and returned to her own country to complete her studies. She added that she had always felt welcomed and safe in the UK, and we agreed that if our UK students were encouraged to study, even for short periods of time in Saudi Arabia, this could only further our understanding of each other, encourage tolerance and dispel fear.

Yes, a surprising visit and leaving on the Sunday morning as the sun rose once again I knew for certain I, with Joanna and Maddalaine, would do all we could to find ways in the months ahead to give practical support to the women we had met who are providing educational opportunities for the many willing hearts in their care.

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Everyone who comes to Saudi Arabia or meets up with Saudis is "Surprised". Just goes to show you how the relentless media attacks on us are huh?

 

[hawx]

last time i checked women couldn't drive and vote in saudi arabia !

enough said.

 

[Mosamania]

last time i checked women couldn't drive and vote in saudi arabia !

enough said.

Where have you been the past couple of months dude

 

[hawx]

Where have you been the past couple of months dude

they are allow to drive now ?
i heard a women got punishment of 15 lashes for driving king has to intervene and stop that and there are talks to allow women to vote in next elections.
btw elections are for ?

Your country name is KINGDOM of saudi arabia wats the voting for ?

 

[Mosamania]

they are allow to drive now ?
i heard a women got punishment of 15 lashes for driving king has to intervene and stop that and there are talks to allow women to vote in next elections.
btw elections are for ?

Your country name is KINGDOM of saudi arabia wats the voting for ?

The judge who gave that sentence has been fired and you are right we are proudly a Kingdom things will change in time I am against democracy like government now not until the next generation of Saudis starts to take office.

---------- Post added at 06:27 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:26 PM ----------

they are allow to drive now ?
i heard a women got punishment of 15 lashes for driving king has to intervene and stop that and there are talks to allow women to vote in next elections.
btw elections are for ?

Your country name is KINGDOM of saudi arabia wats the voting for ?

The judge who gave that sentence has been fired and you are right we are proudly a Kingdom things will change in time I am against democracy like government now not until the next generation of Saudis starts to take office.

 

[Zarvan]

last time i checked women couldn't drive and vote in saudi arabia !

enough said.

First Check the ratio of crime against women in your country and Saudi Arabia before talking enough said

 

[Sinnerman108]

last time i checked women couldn't drive and vote in saudi arabia !

enough said.

Have you driven in Saudi Arabia ?
Thank God women don't drive