Women's Rights in Saudi Arabia
매주 금요일마다 나는 시내 백화점 문화센터에서 원어민 영어를 한다. 한 시간 동안 집에서 읽어온 책으로 영어로만 이야기를 하는 거다. 그런데 이달엔 꼭 금요일마다 공 칠 기회가 생겼다. 초록이 절정인 공치기 참 좋은 계절. 나의 몸은 절로 만사 제치고 공!!!으로 가 모든 걸 오케이 해버리니 이달엔 오늘 처음 영어수업에 참석하는 거다. 서로 시간을 아끼기 위해 교재는 모두 집에서 읽어오기로 되어있는 수업이다. 그러므로 읽고 단어를 찾아가야 하는데 모두들 노트에 빽빽이 원문 자체를 적어오고 단어 찾고 자기 의견까지 모두 적어오는 열성파 엄마들이다. 그래서 나도 해야겠다 생각했는데 난 공책에 쓰는 것보다 이곳에 두두두두 손가락으로 두들기는 게 훨씬 머리에 잘 들어오고 빠르기 때문에 이곳을 이용한다. 자 오늘 수업할 거 시작!
Women's Rights in Saudi Arabia
So-Hee, you look so happy today. Did you get some good news?
Yes, I did! I passed my driver's test! Now I have a driver's license.
Wow, that's great! Congratulations! Was the test difficult?
Actually, I was a little nervous, but I made all the turns and stops correctly.
Well, I'm happy for you. You are lucky to live in Korea. In some countries, women are not allowed to drive.
I can't imagine that.
By the way, now that you have a driver's license, when are you going to take me for a ride?
I will be happy to take you fro a ride-when I get a car. At the moment, I don't have one.
I see. Well, I'll take a rain check on that promise.
a rain check 우천 시 교환권 (바로 중지되는 운동경기 같은 경우)
take a rain check (on something) 다음을 기약하다.
I'll take a rain check on that promise. 그 약속에 대해 다음 기회로 미루겠습니다.
What are you doing?
I'm practicing driving with this video game!
Don't you know women are not allowed to drive in our country?
I know. But I'm preparing for my future! I'm sure the day will come when women can drive.
Oh. don't start a trend. If word gets around, the government will prohibit this game.
In early 2016, a Starbucks coffee shop in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, needed some renovations. Normally, there was a wall in the shop that separated male and female customers. Since the wall had to be removed for the renovations, the manager of the coffee shop placed a sign in the window that read: "Please, no entry for ladies; only send your driver to order. Thank you. " The sign highlighted two rules of Saudi society that most people around the world will find shocking: Women must have a man to drive them, and men and women must sit separately when they are in public places. A religious police squad ensures that the rules are enforced.
squad 선수단, 집단.
While Saudi women were allowed to vote in municipal elections in 2015 for the first time, women's rights remain severely restricted compared to the rest of the world. In Saudi Arabia, a woman cannot open a bank account without her husband's permission. Women cannot go anywhere without a male guardian called a mahram, who is usually a male relative. In one extreme case, cited by the Washington Post, a teenager reported to police that she had been gang-raged. However, since she was not with a mahram at the time, she was punished by the court and was actually given more lashes than one of her alleged rapists.
municipal 지방자치제의
lash 후려치다
alleged 추정되는
The Saudi government recentlyu announced that it was considering lifting the ban on female drivers, but any such change of policy would still have to be approved by the conservative body of senior religious leaders. These senior clerics typically argue that allowing female derivers would undermine traditional social values. In 2011, a group of Saudi women challenged the ban against female drivers by encouraging women to ignore the laws and post photos on social media of themselves driving. The response by women was very meager, and the campaign could not be considered a success.
undermine 기반을 약화시키다.
meager 메마른, 빈약한
What do you think?
1. Was there ever a time in the history of your country when women could not drive?
2. What are some past restrictions of women's rights that were in effect in your country(e.g., no voting)?
3. Are there any restrictions of women's rights that still exist in your country today?
4. Are women in your country paid the same amount as a man for doing the same type of job?
5. What percentage of the top CEOs in your country are women?
6. Have you ever visited a country in the Middle East? What was your impression?
7. In your opinion, who are safer drivers, men or women?
(사진: 꽃 뜰)