Cristen

Yeah. This was something really interesting to look at, especially when we were – we learned about sorta the history, the social history of driving in the U.S. and what a big taboo it was for women earlier in the 20th century to get behind the wheel. This is som
ething that’s still going on in Saudi Arabia and there might be a little bit more opportunity for women drivers opening up in that country very soon.

Molly

Right. These drivers have been living under a ban. Female drivers are banned from driving in Saudi Arabia thanks to an event that happened in 1990 in which women took – they started driving around in the streets as this silent protest for women’s rights. So that caused this big crackdown on female drivers. There were all these proclamations that women driving were a force of evil. It was a sign of the end world because it was a sign – I mean, like we were talking about, driving is a form of independence.

If you live in a country where women’s rights and women’s independence are not valued, then the most visible symbol you can make of that is to take away their cars.

Cristen

All of that sprang from the actions of just 49 women in 15 cars driving through Riyadh. I mean, it’s not even – it’s a pretty small protest if you think about it, but it had these enormous ripple effects. The Guardian mentioned, said a study in 2004 showed that 47 percent of Saudi women owned a car, but were entirely dependent on men in the family to drive them, or they had to hire drivers. Some women will even have their underage sons drive them just to get errands done or make sure that they don’t get caught driving a car.

Molly

Yeah. So I mean, it sounds sort of crazy. When I was first reading this article, I was, like, “Whoa.” That’s a good way to sum it up, “Whoa,” but then when you look at the history of women and driving in our country, it honestly doesn’t seem so different. Definitely not as restrictive, but it’s very interesting to see over time.

Cristen

And the reason we should mention that this popped up in the news in the first place is because there has been a rumor that Saudi women will be allowed to drive within the next two months.

Molly

Yeah.

Cristen

So it seems like such a given a given for us. Like we said, Molly, driving really is the ultimate independence. Whether you’re a boy or a girl, once you turn 16 and you get the keys to the car and you can go out on the road – I mean, I still remember being 16, 17, and just the feeling. Turning on the radio, cranking up my jams and driving down the road alone, it’s a huge thing. So it’ll be an interesting thing to see what happens in Saudi Arabia, and see if, I guess, other women’s rights kinda follow in suit with something as basic as driving.