Resource: All-Female Enterprise
Media Type:
QuickTime Video
Length: 2m 04s
Size: 3.1 MB
The Azka Pickle Cooperative is an all-female enterprise that has empowered a group of Palestinian widows. The women are faced with more challenges than a group of businessmen is likely to encounter, but are successful in meeting these challenges head on with great benefit to their cooperative. In this video from Wide Angle, viewers experience the ups and downs of this all-female operated pickle business.
Alternate Media Available:
Transcript (Rich Text Format Document)
Supplemental Media Available:
Middle East Map (GIF Image)
Palestine/Israel Map (JPEG Image)
Loading reviews...Teachers' Domain, All-Female Enterprise, published August 22, 2008, retrieved on ,
http://www.teachersdomain.org/resource/wa08.socst.world.glob.enterprise/
- Background Essay
- Questions for Discussion
- Standards
Print Background EssayArab women living in Israel face many challenges living under the patriarchal values and social customs of traditional Islam. Though theologians argue that the Qur'an does not establish the superiority of men over women, patriarchal customs often predominate in many Arab societies. There can be social disapproval towards Arab women who want to enter the workplace. A woman's primary responsibility is usually interpreted as fulfilling her role as a wife and mother, whereas a man's role is to work and be able to financially support his wife and family. Adding to this struggle is the fact that Muslim women often retain their household duties even if they do enter the workforce. Many Arab women find it difficult to balance their home responsibilities with a desire to find work outside the home, and may only be able to find the time for part-time employment.
On top of social and familial obstacles, the tension between Jews and Arabs in Israel has intensified the adversity faced by Arab women. Mobility is severely restricted due to this ongoing conflict. Security concerns persuade many women to stay home. However, high rates of poverty and unemployment have forced Arab men living in Israel to make attitudinal changes. In the last three years, the number of working Arab women has increased. Many uneducated Arab women are turning to self-employment. Educated Arab female professionals are taking jobs even if it requires going out of town.
The Wide Angle film "Picles, Inc." offers a portrait of a small-scale, all female business in Israel. Eight women, all widows, established a pickling plant using skills they all learned from their mothers. Keeping this costly venture solvent and coping with social opposition to a female-led business proved to be an extremely tough task. Being willing to break taboos, these widows became the most unlikely revolutionaries.
We assign reference terms to each statement within a standards document and to each media resource, and correlations are based upon matches of these terms for a given grade band. If a particular standards document of interest to you is not displayed yet, it most likely has not yet been processed by ASN or by Teachers' Domain. We will be adding social studies and arts correlations over the coming year, and also will be increasing the specificity of alignment.Source: Wide Angle: "Pickles, Inc."
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