Ahlan ya tulaab!
I wanted to share some of the great insights you all had while we were watching "Wajda" and having our discussion about gender and civil society in Saudi Arabia:
Water seems to be very valuable in this society...
Men have a lot of privileges, while women are protected, but restricted and forgotten.
There seem to be lots of superstitions about what women can do and cannot do.
Girls can't be heard by men outside.
Women can't drive, and they have laws against it.
They only get a certain amount of water each month...
Men are allowed to have multiple wives, and women don't always seem to like this.
In the movie, the mother won't get a job because it makes her mother jealous.
Schools are separated by gender.
If you ride a bike you won't be able to have children?
The women dress for their husbands, won't sing, won't cut their hair, can't have their name on the family tree. They're invisible.
The men don't even want women touching each other?
The Quran is a huge part of daily life, and affects people's opinion of you, sometimes.
Women seem to be afraid of what men think.
This was a great discussion! Thanks for all your work.
