Hold Saudi Arabia Accountable
Free Saudi Activists
From our Free Saudi Women Coalition:
Saudi Arabia has arrested at least ten women’s rights activists for peacefully protesting the government’s treatment of women. These are people like me, who couldn’t stand by while women were banned from driving, or traveling without the permission of their male guardian.
I left my home in Saudi Arabia after years trying to convince my father to let me study in the United States. But once I began my Master’s degree, he canceled my scholarship and demanded that I return home to marry me to a man of his choosing. I knew that if I returned, my safety was at risk, so I decided to stay and seek asylum.
Even though I had no money to pay for school, rent, a car, I managed to escape and survive thanks to the support of my school community. I am one of the lucky ones — so many women still live under these oppressive rules.
Women in Saudi live under a male guardianship system and are banned from driving. Women are being imprisoned for attempting to escape their families like I did. Now people are being arrested and denied legal counsel for peacefully challenging these laws. Activists on the ground live in fear that there may be more arrests.
I dream of the day I and could return to my home safely, when Saudi women are free to move about their country without risking arrest. Join me in standing up with our Free Saudi Women Coalition and Women’s March Global who are standing for activists who are fighting for that dream.
-Samah Damanhoori
