When iconic American singer Mariah Carey was offered the chance to perform in Saudi Arabia this month, she "accepted the opportunity as a positive step toward the dissolution of gender segregation," her publicists said. She hopes to bring "inspiration [and] encouragement to all audiences."
Not everyone sees it that way.
The pop star and Grammy Award winner has come under fire for accepting the offer, and activists have called on her to cancel Thursday's performance in protest of Saudi Arabia's detention of female activists. Some have also called for her to recognize the brutal killing of Washington Post contributing columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last year.
While Saudi Arabia has recently loosened some restrictions on women, it has also cracked down on women advocating for further freedoms. Loujain al-Hathloul is one of the female activists who have been behind bars since May 2018. Hathloul was arrested after regularly pushing for women's rights in Saudi Arabia, at one point driving into the kingdom from the United Arab Emirates when women were still banned from operating vehicles. She also fought against guardianship laws that require men to sign off on female participation in certain activities.
As The Washington Post previously reported, people familiar with the activists' conditions in prison said they were beaten and deprived of sleep. Some had "apparent signs of abuse, including uncontrollable shaking or difficulty standing." Human Rights Watch has also reported that Saudi authorities have tortured, sexually harassed and assaulted a number of women's-rights advocates who have been detained since May.
