Week 16: "Saudi Women Shatter the Lingerie Ceiling" - NY Times

1. Women in Saudi Arabia are finally being able to sell lingerie and cosmetics in retail shops.
2. Gives more concrete women's rights to Saudi women, who are usually restricted by Shari'a law and religious police. 
3. Because of the increasing number of women in Saudi Arabia who are getting educated, the government is realizing the effect of their economic output on the country's economy as a whole if they hold jobs. 
4. This may lead to more freedoms for Saudi women, such as the ability to drive in Saudi Arabia without a male escort or hold a variety of jobs. 

This relates to me because of its impact on women's rights as a whole. Although the prospects for completely equal rights has increased over the past 100 years, the progress in the Middle East regarding women's rights has been significantly less than the progress in Western countries. However, because of the increased need for Middle Eastern countries to become involved in the Western economy, many Middle Eastern countries are acquiescing and allowing more rights to be had for women in their country. This does indicate more progress, but the gap between women's rights in Western countries and women's rights in Middle Eastern countries is still very large. 

Source: Lippman, Thomas W. "Saudi Women Shatter the Lingerie Ceiling." New York Times. 21 Jan 2012: n. page. Web. 12 Feb. 2012.<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/opinion/sunday/saudi-women-break-a-barrier-the-right-to-sell-lingerie.html?ref=middleeast>.