THE WOMAN WHO FELL FROM THE SKY: AN AMERICAN JOURNALIST IN YEMEN

From : Oberlin Alumni Magazine

Restless in her career and her life, Jennifer Steil, a gregarious, liberal New Yorker, initially accepted a short-term opportunity in 2006 to teach a journalism class to the staff of the Yemen Observer in Sana’a. Seduced by the eager reporters and the challenging prospect of teaching a free speech model of journalism there, she extended her stay to a year as the paper’s editor-in-chief. In confronting the blatant mistreatment and strict governance of women by their male counterparts, she learns to appreciate the strength of Arab women in the workplace. While forging surprisingly deep friendships with women and men whose traditions and beliefs are in total opposition to her own, Steil learns a cultural appreciation she never could have predicted.