Some days it seems like you can't read the English media without seeing story after story about how we're oppressed as Arab women: from being forced to wear the hijab to not being allowed to leave our homes, it's tough being an Arab women – and clearly we all have it exactly the same.
The biggest shame is that without Western NGOs helping us, we're powerless to change it. Here's 13 reasons the world should feel sorry for us and our inability to effect change on our own.
1. "They can't work."
Raja Easa Al-Gurg runs the UAE’s Al Gurg Group, whose trade and commerce she has expanded to include 24 companies and 370 international brand partnerships. She has also participated in multiple economic, political and social advancements in the UAE.
2. "Wearing the hijab limits them in so many ways."
Kuwaiti Aseel Shaheen became the first Arab woman to officiate at Wimbledon in July 2015. As a former swimmer and coach, she had always wanted to become an international umpire in the largely male-dominated officiating field, and finally did. In 2011, she got her white badge as she attended officiating school before making it to the prestigious tennis tournament.
3. "They're all uneducated."
Dr. Khawla Al Khuraya earned her MD in general surgery and medicine when she was admitted at King Saud University in Riyadh. She then completed her residency in clinical pathology in Washington D.C. at Georgetown University Hospital. Al Khuraya is more than just her degrees. She is a physician and pathology professor who was the first to discover the cancer-triggering FOSM1 gene in the human body and is currently a cancer specialist at Kind Faysal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre.
4. "They aren't allowed to play music."
5. "They have no say in government."
Amal Qubaisi made history in 2015 when she was elected the president and speaker of the Federal National Council, the UAE’s federal authority, making her the first woman in the Arab world to become the president or speaker of a national council or assembly. Thus, she is the first woman in the Arab world to hold the highest parliamentary position. Aside from her political career, Qubaisi is a former architect and professo of architecture at the UAE university. She has worked with UNESCO on the documentation and preservation of some of the UAE's most significant heritage sites.
6. "They can do nothing on their own."
Latifa El-Nady was the first Egyptian woman to become a pilot and the first Egyptian woman to fly a plane solo from Cairo to Alexandria. Nady was friends with Amelia Earheart and inspired many other women of her generation to attend flying school and become pilots as well.
7. "They are being left out of the tech revolution."
As an avid swimmer, Lebanese Hind Hobeika launched Instabeat, a waterproof monitor for swimmers that tracks, stores and displays instant feedback of your heart rate to optimize your performance. Hobeika was a contestant on the Qatar-based Stars of Science who later won big at 2012 MIT Enterprise Forum and finally launched her startup. During the 2012 Olympics, her product was tested by 15 Olympic swimmers.
8. "They've never won awards in film."
Having started as an actress herself, Nadine Labaki has gone on to become Lebanon's most successful director. Her directorial debut "Caramel" premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, while her film "Where Do We Go Now" won the People's Choice Award at the 2011 Toronto Film Festival.
9. "They are never No. 1 in anything."
Egyptian athlete Raneem El-Weleily became the first Egyptian female athlete to occupy the No. 1 spot in any sport and the first-ever Egyptian to become the world's top ranked squash player. How's that for being No.1?
10. "They have no voice."
Oh, Queen Rania . The definition of an outstanding ambassador and a perfect voice for the Middle East and Arab women in particular, Queen Rania has long been focusing on the power of education, allowing women to believe that that is the one thing they truly need to transcend the barriers that have long dominated their lives.
11. "They have no place in the comedy world."
Tima Shomali, a Jordanian comedian, started off as an actor and writer for the show "Bath Bayakha" which ultimately led her to make her own web series, "Fe-Male Show," a romantic comedy series on dating and marriage from a woman's point of view which garnered more than 24 million views, making it one of the most popular TV shows in Jordan.
12. "They can't be leaders."
Fatima Al-Jaber is one of the many Arab women who have made it big in the business world. Al-Jaber runs the UAE's Al-Jaber Group, which has worked on some of the country's most iconic construction projects. She was also the first Emirati woman to be elected to the board of directors at the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce. Aside from business, she is an advocate for various social issues.
13. "They have no sense of adventure."
Lebanese rock climbing enthusiast Ghida Arnaout is not only an adventure seeker herself but has gone on to co-host Quest Arabiya 's new adventure-travel show “Nabd Al Moghamara” (Pulse of Adventure). Along with co-host Hussein Gazzazz, a Saudi-Egyptian skydiving fanatic, Arnaout has traveled throughout the Middle East and North Africa to showcase the best adventure destinations the region has to offer.