I grew up in a loving family that valued education and equality in all aspects of life. My mother was the only woman in my extended family who held a job and not only was but continues to be at 91 a true inspiration.

I only became aware of the pervasive patriarchal mentality in Lebanon when as a young adult I was asked “why do you need a university degree when you will end up in the kitchen?” Every fiber of my body revolted against that question and I boldly responded that my place is among the many Lebanese women who are independent, educated, and in the work force. It was then I realized that equality only existed when it was given freely without judgments or conditions.

Since the seventies women participation in the work has been steadily increasing from 18% in the seventies, to 28% in the nineties, and is currently at around 31 %. The number of women attending universities has also been steadily increasing and is equally represented in various fields. Nowadays, the percentage of young women in Lebanon’s major universities either equals that of young men or slightly surpasses it across various fields of study. However, even today women in Lebanon continue to face overt (as defined by law) and covert (as a result of traditions and patriarchal attitudes) discrimination.

The Lebanese law does not grant women equal rights starting with citizenship. Lebanese women cannot grant the Lebanese nationality to their children or foreign husband. Only descendants of male Lebanese have the right for citizenship. To complicate matters further, Lebanese women do not have equal rights when it comes to civil rights. This is mostly due to the fact that there is no unified civil code covering personal status issues such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, child custody, or adultery. Instead there are fifteen religious-based personal status laws defined and governed by their respective religious courts. As such, these laws differentiate between the rights and duties of men and women and invariably favor men.