aised up to heaven and saw that the denizens were poor people: I was raised into the hellfire and saw that most of its denizens were women. This quote demonstrates that men think poorly of women in Iran. In the Islamic culture, women are considered to be the property first of her guardian (usually her father) and then ownership over her is transferred to her husband. Iranian women actually have many more rights and freedoms than some other countries in the Middle East. Girls are allowed to go to school and learn, although the schools are segregated according to sex to keep up with the Islamic beliefs. Before the 1970s, only 34 % of the girls attended primary school and even fewer went to universities(www.geocities.com/~Irrc/Women/iman.htm). Today children between the ages of six and twelve must go to primary school, but not all parents send their daughters to classes. Women of Iran do not own the clothes that they wear. They have no rights over the children and little protection against a violent husband. If a husband kills his wife, her family must pay a considerable amount for his death sentence. If they cannot meet the cost, he goes free. A husband can order his wife out of the house. He can divorce her without telling her, and he can have up to four wives. Iranian women have also been pushed out of the work force. All women have been forced into part-time work so that nothing hinders their holy duty of motherhood. Women are also forced unwillingly into arranged marriages, which are generally set up by the grooms parents. Within the marriage, abusive behavior is tolerated and goes unpunished. Ninety percent of the time, there is no way to get out of an abusive marriage.Deborah Barndts article Whose Choice? Flexible Women Workers In the Tomato Food Chain, is of substantial value in explaining the current position of Mexican women in the labor force. Women play a key role in production for export based on their availability to em...
