CAIRO: The metro car was unusually empty when we started hearing the somewhat typical begging chants, except this time, as the sound came closer, I failed to see a tall man walking through the aisle with his palm stretched out to collect money. Crawling through the aisle, this beggar had one arm and no legs. The passengers stared at him, some unable to hide their disturbance or sympathy as others looked through their purses for change. Traumatic silence filled the car as everybody watched curiously as he used his one arm to shift his body out of the car. Sitting on the opposite bench, although fully covered except for her green eyes, as I got out my notebook and pen, I got the feeling she was up for a chat. With a husband dancing between workshops, unable to find a stable job, 46-year old Mona Gaber blamed unemployment on the increasing number of working women in Egypt. “I'm not against women working, because I understand that some need to. I'm against women working when they don't need to,” Mona explained to me, then politely advised me to quit my job if my father is financially able to support me until I get married. I laughed, but she assured me she was serious. A metro car in Cairo. Tapping on my shoulder, Mona interrupted me when I tried to explain to her why I work, and said, “You don't need to prove that you're equal, a good man will make you feel equal whether you've got a job or not.” Despite our different perspectives, her voice remained calm and friendly during our conversation, and even though I could only see her eyes, I could tell she was smiling. Mona argued that according to Islam, the man is obliged to support the woman and therefore it's unnecessary for women to get jobs. “Everybody has a role in the society, my job is to raise my children – being a housewife is a lot of work and I take it very seriously – that is my job”, Mona said to me. When we shook hands, she pulled her face cover up allowing me to see the face of the woman I'd been talking to for over half an hour, and then she waved and promised that she'd pray for me to find a good husband. BM
