Chelsea Handler offends Saudi women by swearing on TV at Arab men The US comedienne Chelsea Handler has offended Saudi women by swearing on TV at Saudi men for being able to receive notification by SMS of their wives' travels abroad. Some women have accused Handler of insulting Islam . An anonymous female blogger said that Handler's clip was offensive not only to Saudi women, but to Islam as well.
"We learned that Muslim women should not leave the house without the approval of their husbands and I think it's the right thing to do," she said.
"Her words were very aggressive and we do not accept such attacks, especially using bad words knowing that this is not how we were raised nor that this is not normal to us in Arab local or TV shows," she added.
Another woman said Saudi men had the choice to opt in or out, therefore there was little coercion involved. The 42-year old stay at home mother said: "I would like to inform Chelsea that this is only a service that people can activate or decline and that this was not forced upon us. This service was developed by the Saudi authorities and not by husbands who want to track their wives. It is a matter of choice."
Ahmed Al Omran, blogging under the name Saudi Jeans, feigned outrage at the use of language and the lack of understanding by Handler. However, Saudi Jeans said this was missing the point and questioned why "women had become so oppressed that they essentially agreed with their oppressors."
A few other women have, on the other hand, agreed with Handler and said it was right of her to draw attention to the situation.
Yasmine Abdulrazak, an English teacher at a college in Jeddah said: "I don't know why we are always offended when people talk about us. Yes, the media highlights the negative things about Saudi Arabia and they always make women feel like we need a hero to save us. Chelsea is a comedian and her job is to mock people and attack others to make her audience laugh. We see her make fun of celebrities, politicians and nations but they do not express offence in the same way we did today," she added.