http://www.arabnews.com/?page=13§ion=0&article=67776&d=5&m=8&y=2005&pix=kingdom.jpg&category=Local%20Press
Sunday, 31, July, 2005 (24, Jumada al-Thani, 1426) Maids, Too, Can Drive Ali Al-Mousa . Al-Watan "Look, the maid is driving a car," shouted my little daughter when we stepped outside Kuala Lumpur airport. That was the first woman my child saw sitting in the driver's seat. The woman driver passed our car when we were heading toward the city. My child's words were an expression of how someone in her age views the outside world. Her words said everything about the kind of teaching that we give our children. It was no wonder my daughter reacted in disbelief when she came face to face with the outside world. Her reaction to seeing a woman driving a car was a true expression of how she views the world around her. Our society continues to view a woman's job as no more than that of a housekeeper. This applies even to a woman who assumes a senior position as manager of operations at an international Asian airport. It is unfortunate that this ugly picture we draw for others is shared by everyone, a child of eight and a man of 80. Facing northward, we see the world divided into two. All that we see to our right is a world of cheap laborers and maids. When we turn left there we see an infidel West. Based on this division, all it takes to judge a person is to know which part of that world they hail from. We excel in judging others, always seeking ourselves as a unique brand of people. We are so different from others that we think we were created on a day different than the one in which all other humans were created. This false sense of superiority is not only felt toward those who are geographically and emotionally far from us, but toward the very Muslim societies around us. We view ourselves as the only rightful Muslims while others practice questionable beliefs. Our problem is that we refuse to look at the same mirror used by all other peoples in this world. Because of this false sense of superiority Saudis find themselves lining in a separate queue in front of passport counters at New York or London airports and now at Kuala Lumpur's as well. Before the world discovered our true picture, we used to receive a VIP reception at all foreign airports. Now we are required to get a visa in advance to be able to travel to countries such as Indonesia and Bangladesh, the two very countries whose people we view as only maids and cheap laborers. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Milis Wanita Muslimah Membangun citra wanita muslimah dalam diri, keluarga, maupun masyarakat. Situs Web: http://www.wanita-muslimah.com ARSIP DISKUSI : http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wanita-muslimah/messages Kirim Posting mailto:wanita-muslimah@yahoogroups.com Berhenti mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Milis Keluarga Sejahtera mailto:keluarga-sejahtera@yahoogroups.com Milis Anak Muda Islam mailto:majelismuda@yahoogroups.com This mailing list has a special spell casted to reject any attachment .... Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wanita-muslimah/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/