Manal al-Sharif

Saudi Arabian activist

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners: 13
Total plays: 13

via Last.fm · Manal al-Sharif

Quotes

“The rain starts with a single drop.”
“Imagine your son becomes your guardian, no matter my capabilities as a woman, I am still enslaved to somebody else. Freedom for me is to live with dignity, and if my dignity and freedom is controlled by a man, I will never be free.”
“While people are celebrating on Sunday we shouldn't forget the people who fought for lifting this ban are in jail.”
“I am so happy I want to be there. I know Saudi Arabia will never be the same again, women will have easy access to transportation and that means they will be more part of the workforce.”
“Women driving is just the first step - we have a long way to go.”

via Wikiquote · CC BY-SA

Key facts

Born: ( 1979-04-25 ) 25 April 1979 (age 47) , Mecca , Saudi Arabia
Occupations: Computer Scientist, Saudi Aramco

Article

Manal al-Sharif (Arabic: منال الشريف, romanized: Manāl Aš-Šarīf, pronounced [maˈnaːl aʃːaˈriːf]; born 25 April 1979) is a Saudi women's rights activist who helped start a right-to-drive campaign in 2011. Wajeha al-Huwaider filmed al-Sharif driving a car as part of the campaign. The video was posted on YouTube and Facebook. Al-Sharif was detained on 21 May 2011, released, and rearrested the following day. On 30 May, al-Sharif was released on bail, on the conditions of returning for questioning if required, not driving, and not talking to the media. The New York Times and Associated Press associated the women's driving campaign as part of the Arab Spring and the long duration of al-Sharif's detention due to Saudi authorities' fear of protests.

Following her driving campaign, al-Sharif remained an active critic of the Saudi government, tweeting on issues including imprisoned female foreign workers, the lack of elections for the Shura Council, and the murder of Lama al-Ghamdi. Her work has been recognized by Foreign Policy, Time, and the Oslo Freedom Forum.