SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Saudi Arabia announced women in the kingdom will be allowed to drive starting in June 2018, after years of protests. (Photo: @noconversion/Twitter)
After 27 Years of Determined Protest, Saudi Women Win the Right to Drive
Activists celebrate step towards equality while acknowledging that the kingdom has a long way to go
Sep 26, 2017
Rights groups applauded Saudi Arabia's announcement on Tuesday that it will allow women to drive beginning next June, after decades of criticism from other countries and campaigning by Saudi women.
CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin, who wrote the book Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection last year, highlighted the sacrifices made by women who have fought for a lift of the driving ban.
" Saudi Arabia is still the most gender-segregated society in the world...Until women have the basic rights about determining their own lives, they will never be free."--Medea Benjamin, CodePink
"For the past 27 years, since 1990, women have been organizing protests and petition drives to gain the right to drive," said Benjamin. "Many have been arrested, jailed, lost their jobs and harassed for their peaceful protests of simply getting behind the wheel and driving."
The inability to legally drive has caused some women to opt out of the workforce, as much of their paychecks are spent on car services. The New York Times noted how economic factors and the kingdom's concern with its image may have played into the monarchy's decision to remove the ban:
The decision highlights the damage that the no-driving policy has done to the kingdom's international reputation and its hopes for a public relations benefit from the reform. Saudi leaders also hope the new policy will help the economy by increasing women's participation in the workplace...Low oil prices have limited the government jobs that many Saudis have long relied on, and the kingdom is trying to push more citizens, including women, into gainful employment.
Still, Benjamin said the many women who risked their lives protesting for the right to drive should be given recognition, lest the country's leaders attempt to frame the decision as a purely practical one.
"Credit should go to 27 years of women's defiance," she said.
Other supporters celebrated the end of the ban on social media.
Oh yess!! Saudi Arabia agrees to let women drive. Victory of human rights.Respect for the activists #SaudiWomenDrive #SaudiWomenCanDrive
-- Jagrati Shukla (@JagratiShukla29) September 26, 2017
Benjamin cautioned against heaping too much praise on Saudi Arabia, where women still have to get permission from men in their families in order to work, travel, and otherwise live freely--even without the driving ban.
"Saudi Arabia is still the most gender-segregated society in the world, where the male guardianship system gives men the right to make the most critical life decisions for females," said Benjamin. "This includes when to marry, who to marry, where to work, where to go to school. They must also be completely covered in public. Until women have the basic rights about determining their own lives, they will never be free."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Rights groups applauded Saudi Arabia's announcement on Tuesday that it will allow women to drive beginning next June, after decades of criticism from other countries and campaigning by Saudi women.
CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin, who wrote the book Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection last year, highlighted the sacrifices made by women who have fought for a lift of the driving ban.
" Saudi Arabia is still the most gender-segregated society in the world...Until women have the basic rights about determining their own lives, they will never be free."--Medea Benjamin, CodePink
"For the past 27 years, since 1990, women have been organizing protests and petition drives to gain the right to drive," said Benjamin. "Many have been arrested, jailed, lost their jobs and harassed for their peaceful protests of simply getting behind the wheel and driving."
The inability to legally drive has caused some women to opt out of the workforce, as much of their paychecks are spent on car services. The New York Times noted how economic factors and the kingdom's concern with its image may have played into the monarchy's decision to remove the ban:
The decision highlights the damage that the no-driving policy has done to the kingdom's international reputation and its hopes for a public relations benefit from the reform. Saudi leaders also hope the new policy will help the economy by increasing women's participation in the workplace...Low oil prices have limited the government jobs that many Saudis have long relied on, and the kingdom is trying to push more citizens, including women, into gainful employment.
Still, Benjamin said the many women who risked their lives protesting for the right to drive should be given recognition, lest the country's leaders attempt to frame the decision as a purely practical one.
"Credit should go to 27 years of women's defiance," she said.
Other supporters celebrated the end of the ban on social media.
Oh yess!! Saudi Arabia agrees to let women drive. Victory of human rights.Respect for the activists #SaudiWomenDrive #SaudiWomenCanDrive
-- Jagrati Shukla (@JagratiShukla29) September 26, 2017
Benjamin cautioned against heaping too much praise on Saudi Arabia, where women still have to get permission from men in their families in order to work, travel, and otherwise live freely--even without the driving ban.
"Saudi Arabia is still the most gender-segregated society in the world, where the male guardianship system gives men the right to make the most critical life decisions for females," said Benjamin. "This includes when to marry, who to marry, where to work, where to go to school. They must also be completely covered in public. Until women have the basic rights about determining their own lives, they will never be free."
From Your Site Articles
Rights groups applauded Saudi Arabia's announcement on Tuesday that it will allow women to drive beginning next June, after decades of criticism from other countries and campaigning by Saudi women.
CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin, who wrote the book Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection last year, highlighted the sacrifices made by women who have fought for a lift of the driving ban.
" Saudi Arabia is still the most gender-segregated society in the world...Until women have the basic rights about determining their own lives, they will never be free."--Medea Benjamin, CodePink
"For the past 27 years, since 1990, women have been organizing protests and petition drives to gain the right to drive," said Benjamin. "Many have been arrested, jailed, lost their jobs and harassed for their peaceful protests of simply getting behind the wheel and driving."
The inability to legally drive has caused some women to opt out of the workforce, as much of their paychecks are spent on car services. The New York Times noted how economic factors and the kingdom's concern with its image may have played into the monarchy's decision to remove the ban:
The decision highlights the damage that the no-driving policy has done to the kingdom's international reputation and its hopes for a public relations benefit from the reform. Saudi leaders also hope the new policy will help the economy by increasing women's participation in the workplace...Low oil prices have limited the government jobs that many Saudis have long relied on, and the kingdom is trying to push more citizens, including women, into gainful employment.
Still, Benjamin said the many women who risked their lives protesting for the right to drive should be given recognition, lest the country's leaders attempt to frame the decision as a purely practical one.
"Credit should go to 27 years of women's defiance," she said.
Other supporters celebrated the end of the ban on social media.
Oh yess!! Saudi Arabia agrees to let women drive. Victory of human rights.Respect for the activists #SaudiWomenDrive #SaudiWomenCanDrive
-- Jagrati Shukla (@JagratiShukla29) September 26, 2017
Benjamin cautioned against heaping too much praise on Saudi Arabia, where women still have to get permission from men in their families in order to work, travel, and otherwise live freely--even without the driving ban.
"Saudi Arabia is still the most gender-segregated society in the world, where the male guardianship system gives men the right to make the most critical life decisions for females," said Benjamin. "This includes when to marry, who to marry, where to work, where to go to school. They must also be completely covered in public. Until women have the basic rights about determining their own lives, they will never be free."
From Your Site Articles
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.