{"id":373,"date":"2008-12-29T22:53:56","date_gmt":"2008-12-30T02:53:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blacknell.net\/dynamic\/?p=373"},"modified":"2008-12-30T14:05:32","modified_gmt":"2008-12-30T18:05:32","slug":"feeling-the-veil-a-womans-reporting-in-saudi-arabia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blacknell.net\/dynamic\/2008\/12\/29\/feeling-the-veil-a-womans-reporting-in-saudi-arabia\/","title":{"rendered":"Feeling the Veil: A Woman’s Reporting in Saudi Arabia"},"content":{"rendered":"

[And sometimes we find pieces for which we simply never hit the “Publish” button.\u00c2\u00a0 This is about a year and a half old, but still perfectly relevant.]<\/p>\n

Check out this<\/a> excellent piece by Megan Stack, reporter for the LA Times, on her experiences in Saudi Arabia:<\/p>\n

I was ready to cope, or so I thought. I arrived with a protective smirk in tow, planning to thicken the walls around myself. I’d report a few stories, and go home. I had no inkling that Saudi Arabia, the experience of being a woman there, would stick to me, follow me home on the plane and shadow me through my days, tainting the way I perceived men and women everywhere.<\/p>\n

[ . . . ]<\/p>\n

I spent my days in Saudi Arabia struggling unhappily between a lifetime of being taught to respect foreign cultures and the realization that this culture judged me a lesser being. I tried to draw parallels: If I went to South Africa during apartheid, would I feel compelled to be polite?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\" That last question is something I’ve considered myself, especially during my travels this past year.\u00c2\u00a0 The photo on the right was of a Dubai-based newspaper that I read on a flight from Mumbai to Dubai.\u00c2\u00a0 It was a little jarring, to see that as front page news (and not free of irony, with its position right under headline about “Fashion Week”).<\/p>\n

Update: <\/strong>Here’s a response<\/a> that I urge all to read.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[And sometimes we find pieces for which we simply never hit the “Publish” button.\u00c2\u00a0 This is about a year and a half old, but still perfectly relevant.] Check out this excellent piece by Megan Stack, reporter for the LA Times, on her experiences in Saudi Arabia: I was ready to cope, or so I thought. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"activitypub_content_warning":"","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":4,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-373","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-society","category-travel"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t