Islamic countries more egalitarian than you may think

Here’s another one from the “well I’ll be damned” files: This is an excerpt from a recent survey, the Pew Global Attitudes Project ^[PDF], whose results seem to confirm that despite what the media and general consensus will have you believe, Middle-Eastern countries seem to be a lot more interested in educating girls and women then we think:

However, there may be a little footnote: notice that the phrasing could be seen as being a bit ambiguous, depending which mindsets or culture the responders adhere to. It’s possible that a number of those who answered this question may interpret the “importance of educating a girl” to mean in common chores and housework, as opposed to actual academics. I suspect that asking people whether they think girls should have the same education as their male counterparts, or some different (watered-down) form, might yield some rather different answers.

However, this is certainly just a vague assumption. At any rate, those are some pleasantly progressive and egalitarian-looking numbers, and though they by no means indicate that universal education for both boys and girls will develop anytime soon, it is reassuring to see that the common population, at least, is behind the idea.

(via Friendly Atheist)