: Saudi Women Inch Slowly Toward Equality

Last year, when Saudi Arabia started to issue ID cards to women for the first time, conservatives warned that husbands who allowed “their women” to do this would be acting “like a pimp”. That didn’t stop thousands of Saudi women, faces unveiled, from getting IDs that identified them independently rather than as a footnote on a male relative’s ID. It’s an example of the slow march toward equality for Saudi women, who have logged impressive gains in some areas of the kingdom (going from from zero enrollment in college 40 years ago to equal enrollment today). Women are increasingly finding their way into previously male-dominated fields such as management and engineering, although there is still resistance to change. Samar Fatany, a radio journalist, insists Saudi women are not oppressed. “Yes, we want reforms and there are a lot of shortcomings,” she said. “But if a woman is qualified enough, she will open doors.”

Shahed Amanullah is editor-in-chief of altmuslim.com.