Maria_Aya

Hi all
Just found these video's and thought to share them with you all.
For us that we are involved with arabian dance its always interesting to see "from the inside" some things of the everyday life of the women at that areas.
The specific video's are interview of a Saudi woman, upper middle class with excellent english so you will enjoy them.
Dont read the comments on the video's horrible ones from racist narowmind people.
Lets share thoughts after.

Maria Aya

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... because Oriental Dance is the visual poem over the music....

Moon

That was very interesting Maria, thank you. I wonder when this was on Dutch tv, wouldn't hurt if a certain Dutch politician would watch it...

I wish they would have showed a more low class woman too, though. I'm curious how they handle such things as visitors when they don't have money for seperate rooms, seperate entrances etc.

KuteNurse

Hmm...Where do I begin. There is so much I would like to say regarding an Arab woman's lifestyle. I want to say it in an non offending way, so if I come off being offensive, I apologize up front.

Thankyou Maria for sharing the video clips. I did find them to be very interesting and informative. I am amazed at the incredible English that these Saudi women speak. You can clearly tell they have had a great deal of education in the Westerner's language. It is unfortunate that all Arab countries do not have the education that Saudi Arabia has. As Moon suggested, I would liked to have seen a low-class Arab woman's day also for comparrison.

I was under the impression that Arab women did not have such freedom's as working outside the home and such. It was nice to see that these women were able to work. I tend to guess from what I have learned that Arab women of other countries do not have the same luxuries.

Being the traditional American woman myself, so many ideas raced through my head while these women were talking, such as: the one woman said she would like to drive, but in her country she was not able to. Also, having to be covered up from head to toe in the presence of men. I simply can't help but think these women are being forced to cover up, not only by their religion, but by the traditional culture that conforms them to do so. She states that she chooses to cover up. In my personal opinion, I could not imagine how uncomfortable it must be to cover up when it is 100 degrees F in the hot sun. God did not intend for women to hide the beauty that he so lovingly gave women. Also, so much of language if through body language. I believe their ability to use verbal language is hidden underneath all those robes and veils. Therefore, not only is the woman to hide her body with discomfort and her language is impaired. By the looks of the way the veil covers her face, her peripheal vision can also be impaired.

These Saudi women do seem modern in many ways. Her use of computers and such. But their inability to drive is outrageous. I think in these videos the women are actually fortunate compared to other Arab countries. I have heard that women have to have a male chaperone with them at all times when out in public. How do these women get their jobs done?? Being a mother and wife means having to get many things done. Grocery shopping...Imagine what it is like having to get all covered up on a day that is over 100 D F, waiting for your chaperone and ride to the grocery store or a doctor's appointment for your child. If you are not covered or have a chaperone with you, think of the consequences and the fear these women must have. To be beaten?? What if the woman was widowed and she had no family??? These are just cruel examples of Arab countries ways of life. These women say they like their way of life, but how could they?? What woman would want to be covered up, beaten if she does something wrong, not be able to drive a car??? What I think of when I see this is, if these women only knew what it was like to live a normal life where they are uncovered and they can be themselves, not have to have a chaperone while at the grocery store. To be able to drive themselves home and eat at the same table as the men. To not live in fear of being beaten. These women would NEVER want to live that way again if they knew what it was like to live freely. To me they live in their own prison.

Basically, these women know no other way of life. If they did, they would not allow themselves to be treated this way.

maariku

Maria, thanks for posting such educative videos. I have a lot of respect for that lady because she has decided to open up her home and life to the world with the goal to raise the awareness. Now, if you really look at it, her life isn't really much different from ours... She is raising a family, working and enjoying it, and sticking to her beliefs and values at the same time. Indeed, I do understand that we are talking about an educated and a well-off woman here, and that not all women have such advantages. But, even though I don't necessarily approve all those traditions, I try to understand that cultures differ, and changes develop gradually. It doesn't matter how hard we wish, tomorrow morning there will still be opressed women (and across the globe, may I add)... there will still be people thinking in racist terms... there will still be people who consider belly dance the same as stripping... etc. But we can work towards decreasing it, step-by-step.

Now, not to end at such an idealistic note... KuteNurse, I think the Saudi women have just recently been granted a legal right to drive. But I think the reasoning behind it was more of an economical one - they just didn't think they could afford importing any more foreign chaffeurs. Now we just have to hope the culture catches up with the legislation.

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"[A good bellydancer] must express life, death, happiness, sorrow, love and anger, but above all she must have dignity." -Tahia Carioca,

gisela

Hi Kute Nurse, I agree with some things in your post and disagree with some others. Some of it is just my personal opinions and can be left out, but I do have some small more general comments.

Women all over the world choose to put tight skirts and high heels on which hinders movement and can even cause harm to the body. Long nails make women unable to do a lot of things. One I know had to have a friend with her to go to the bathroom because she couldn't pull her zipper down herself.

What is normal??? Why and says who???

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You need chaos in your soul to create a dancing star-nietzsche

Moon

Reputation for you, Gisela

Kutenurse, I hope you won't feel offended, but I think it depends on your own perceptian whether you think some things are outrageous or uncomfortable or abnormal. For comparison, some Arabs think things about our society that are not exactly true. I've read in a newspaper once:
"Our women don't suffer. Western women suffer. They are forced to go to work and have to wear short skirts and have to let strange men look at them."
They think we are forced to do such things, but it is often our own choice (influenced by society, but still). I think it's the same for these Arab women. If they say it's their choice to cover up, I believe them.

And like Gisela said, I also can't understand why some girls wear short skirts with bare legs and high heels in mid winter. How uncomfortable that must be! And I'm totally disgusted by the way women are still portrayed as sex objects by this society.
And about the temperature thing, I think it's kind of a Western idea to put on as little clothes as possible when it's hot. I have the idea people who grew up in countries that are already hot for centuries tend to put on more layers of cloths to protect the skin and keep the sun out. I'm not sure, though.

I think the famous singer Um Khalsoum once said something like: "Western women are doing it all wrong. They don't wear nice clothes when they are at home with their husband, but they dress up when they go out. They should do it the other way round, make sure they look good for their husband. Strange men don't need to look at you."
I kind of think she has a point there

Khaira

I would!

The more I practice oriental dance and the more I learn the lives of arab women and the more I wish to cover up as well!
I'm not planning on wearing abaya, but my style of dressing HAS changed. I understand these women and the way they dress and I know how comfortable and safe it might feel. Also I do not believe they don't know other ways of life. Think of egyptian women on streets. Some waring black abayas, others walking around with figgure-hugging jeans and tops. So some just stick with their beliefs.

Of course its a different story with saudis. But as long as they are happy...its fine, isn't it?

Khaira

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nicknack

On the subject of covering up. To put it simply, when it becomes law, choice has no place in the issue. To be able to choose to cover up, you have to have the freedom to choose not to.

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Cause I'm not here to let you down. But the costume makes the clown.

gypsy8522

I did not find what you said offensive, after all it is your opinion. But I am sorry to say that some of the things you mentioned are completely untrue, something a narrowminded person would say . It seems you have never visited the Middle East or any of the countries you are speaking about, and your opinions are based mostly on what you see on American TV or things you read here and there over the internet. I lived and at least been to each one of those countries and it is nothing like what you described. I have also lived in Ireland and traveled all over Europe and the United States. You say that "it is unfortunate that all Arab countries do not have the education that Saudi Arabia has" Well, it is unfortunate to inform you that Saudi Arabia has the highest rate of illeteracy in the Arab world, whether it is men or women. Not only are women in other arabic countries more educated, but they also speak other languages besides their own, such as English and French.

My father is a doctor and he graduated from Cairo university, which was ranked in 2007 among the world's top 500 univerities. Al Azhar islamic university was the world's first higher learning institution, founded in 988 AD, it is still operating as one of the top Egyptian universities untill today. Egypt is going through the worst times economically, socially and politically, but we still try everything because many many of us believe that a nation cannot survive without education. The United Arab Emirates, those neighbors to the "fortunate" Saudi Arabians, have been buliding their own universities even though their country was a complete desert only 30 years ago. Not only do their plans consist of building some of the best learning institutions in the Middle East, they have also had international campuses for years now including American ones, such as The American University, George Mason University and Harvard! Abudhabi is in process of buliding the first Sorbonne campus out of Paris, it is going to be of the same standards as the real campus of the prestigous French university........ Mind you, Dubai is one of the few oil poor states in the Gulf region, their accomplishments and earnings are made mainly off of tourism and foreign investments. Some of the richer countries like Qatar and Bahrain are now undergoing the same kind of construction to catch up.


You also say "Her use of computers and such. But their inability to drive is outrageous. I think in these videos the women are actually fortunate compared to other Arab countries." I think your comment is ridiculously funny, I am now sure you haven't been to any "other Arab countries" because Saudi Arabia is actually the ONLY Arab country where as women cannot drive cars. "I tend to guess from what I have learned that Arab women of other countries do not have the same luxuries." What luxuries? Where? In Saudi Arabia???


Although many girls in Egypt today wear the islamic hijab, in the "other Arab countries" such as Syria, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia, a typical girl my age would be walking around in jeans and T-shirt. Of course, anyone who has actually been there recently would know this. In Gulf countries however, cities such as Kuwait, Abudhabi and Dubai have more foreigners who make up roughly 95 percent of the entire population, and the remaining 5 percent are the natives. The native people ALWAYS dress traditionally, covered in head to toe... and this INCLUDES the men. As for the rest of the population, everyone is free to dress whichever way they like. In Dubai, it is normal to see Westerners walking around the shopping malls in shorts and tank tops, not really caring this is an islamic country and this may not please some of the natives who are now a minority... but who cares? And no they do not get beaten up!

"These are just cruel examples of Arab countries ways of life." Dear, have you ever been to any of those countries recently?? Because you know you actually have to GO THERE in order to actually experience the "Arab countries way of life", it is not something you experience from behind you comouter screen or your local Fox news.

Yasmine Bint Al Nubia

Great videos Maria, I echo everyone elses gratitude! While I was watching the videos, I paid close attention to each of the women's surroundings.
In the first ideo of the young mother who is a journalist. Clean home, modern appliances, open spaces. She stated she didn't have a maid so she must clean her home herself. Working part-time so she could devote her time to her son, who by the way did not seem happy with the reporters intrusion!

I would wonder though, in a room of abaya clad women and no one spoke, how would a child identify his/her mother? Just curious. Also, the shopping excursion was interesting, trendy clothes, shoes but where would they purchase their abayas?

The second video was of a doctor who appeared self-assured and authoritative. The husband in the video was respectul as were the men who were in the corridors. I noticed that they were also covered!

Yes they typified upper middle class citizens but still a revealing look into their personal and professional lives.
Yasmine

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