'Different Cultures Between Saudi Arabia and United States\r'

' describe as that I am a Saudi-Arabian-Arabian-Arabian-Arabian-Arabian-Arabian-Arabian-Arabian Arabian descent and living in the united States, I beget been exposed to some misunderstandings, stereotypes, and incapacitate generalizations slightly my culture. There constitute been m some(prenominal) instances in which I encountered stereotypes, intimatelyly presented to the American mankind through various media types, which sw everyow limited Americans from realizing or quest to comprehend more ab go forth my culture and heritage.As Thomas So difficult points out â€Å"one of the obstacles to understanding what sortal characteristics follow separately collection around the realism is the far-flung use of the term â€Å"stereotypes” to shed whatever observations or show up may be cited as to distinguishing features of particular group behavior patterns. ” (So well(p), 11).From my perspective, three depressions that most twenty- first-year Centu ry Americans hold back in regards to Saudis which argon stereotypical atomic number 18: 1) our wo custody ar submissive and sacrifice no voice or rights in our society, 2) Saudis be some(prenominal) fanatics or support terrorist natural process in the name of religion, and 3) finally each family in Saudi has its consume cover color well and therefore no former(a) businesses ar required. There be specifically two Saudi laws which Americans strike heard approximately via the media which fox formed American opinion about Saudi Arabia’s office towards women.The first law enforces that women must indemnify their hair and body with a black veil and garb. some other Saudi law which has been minded(p) much media attention is that Saudi women argon non allowed to moil. These laws ar looked upon by Americans as premonition poorly for Saudi women. Because this turn out is in such cracking contrast with the United States’ attitude towards women and their more revealing attire, the media has hyped upon how these Saudi laws argon examples of how Saudi women be submissive because they prepare incomplete stood upon for their rights, such as drive or dress as they desire, nor sought-after(a) to make up a voice in society.What we see instead is a concentrated familial structure with nepotism occurring in society (Lewis, 68-69) age it is authentic that such laws retain direct to women having no public place in their society because they are seemingly â€Å"protected” by their Saudi men, it is unfair to abstain that Saudi women diminution in no rights or voice in society. Saudi women do then have rights such as existence guaranteed certain shares in inheritance, are allowed to take in home, are permitted to choose or eliminate potential husbands, and are considered allude to men in the eye of God (http://www. saudinf.com/main/h61. htm).Furthermore, many Saudi women come to the United States to better educate thems elves and drop to Saudi to seek use as nurses, doctors, professionals, and teachers. Upon returning to Saudi they have a decease in better educating or helping the next contemporaries of women seek out their own take to beive goals. Hence, while it is a valid generalization that Saudi does not promote a public scope or ideology for its women, it does instead change women to better purify upon themselves and anticipate protection for Saudi men that women readiness not have in the states.Lastly, a puffy number of Saudi women have accepted the scope of their responsibilities as a maternal digit in their families and feel that they are submissive to their religion and rear their children appropriately (http://www. saudinf. com/main/h62. htm). While in the United States, we are seeing that women are being forced to work and show for their family units without choice, face a high school possibility of divorce, see that lash out and sexual harassment statistics have increas ed, instances of teen pregnancies have rose, and ultimately cases of broken family lines have increased.From my experience, women’s liberation and freedom is access at a high cost to society’s families and while the belief that women are submissive and lack a voice in Saudi might be dependable from some perspectives, it is obvious that in the United States this stereotype might actually be occurring collect to jealousy perhaps on the part of women who do not have the luxury of selecting if they limit to seek employment or remain at home to raise their children (http://www. wrmea. com/archives/may-june01/0105035. html).Another forceful belief that Americans seem to have about Saudis is that we are all fanatics, villains, or that we support terrorist action mechanism in the name of religion. ostensibly Saudi Arabia which houses the Kaaba, the cube fingerbreadth which is the most sacred rank in Islam, represents our religion and is the commissioning to which the 5 daily prayers are made. For Americans, the media has publicized how Saudi is the provenience of fanatic behavior and dramatizes the excursion made to the site as well as how Saudi men dress in the distinct head share and robe.After September 11th, Americans became overwhelmed with even more media publicity about how the approachingers were of Saudi descent and how Saudi riches has indirectly added in perspirations to attack Westerners, and other such activities. prior to 9/11, Saudi was precisely the land of oil and most Americans could not even note it on the globe! In our modern day world, the news, publications, and movies all instilled within Americans the belief that Saudis were temperamental, gear towards force, and oil rich businessmen.In fact, amusive often portrayed us as villains and school textbooks have been found to associate Islam with violence and intolerance. (http://www. adc. org/index. php? id=283). Due to its rich status, Saudi did not have strong external relationships which could overcome their stereotypes until recently. This belief is not a valid generalization by any means! It is far from the impartiality as Saudis have sought to limit the ultra standpat(prenominal) factions within their area because in homogeneous manner tarnishing its reputation in the world it also causes commotion and turbulency in Saudi Arabia as well.For Saudi, it is of utmost importance in its abroad relations to confine allies and businesses purchasing its oil and it can not permit to alienate its friends. As Saudi is the predominate supplier and largest manufacturer of oil to countries abroad, Americans have the misconception that each Saudi family must view as their own personal oil well in their own backyard. This is a laughable belief, hardly it is not the first sentence I have go through Americans believing it to be a valid one. In fact, the country produces an average of 10. 2 billion bbl/d of kernel oil, comprising crude oil , and natural vaunt liquids.The belief that Saudi has item-by-item oil wells in each individual property is preposterous. In conclusion, I would like to emphasis the significance of acknowledging that Saudi Arabia is seeking to better correct its external relationships with other countries and improve its global image. The leadership in Saudi has sought to temper its ultra conservative factions which have impaired its ability to discipline peace and tranquility both within its borders as well as with out. Generally, the media has created an atmosphere of headache and ignorance about other cultures.This mental manipulation of Americans has lead to merely stereotypes which harm cultural transformation and understanding. Many communities have created outreach programs mingled with different cultures in an effort to achieve better communication, understanding, tolerance, and acceptance. These efforts have enabled Americans to began to open the lines of communication and pull in a grasp that our differences are key to learning how to respect other cultures and not fall to misconceptions about other groups of people.\r\n'