The UAE is very different from America, in case you didn’t already know.
In this modern world of ours we’re reminded quite often that some of our fellow Americans just assume every other country is pretty much like ours. We can tell you that isn’t even close to the truth. Unfortunately, when travelling abroad some Americans behave like they’re still in the States and that can get them in some hot water. A woman from Houston, Texas learned this lesson the hard way after allegedly yelling at a rental vehicle company employee in Dubai, earning her a legal battle and prolonged stay in the United Arab Emirates.
Are these the real abandoned supercars of Dubai?
Fox 26 Houston cracked open this interesting story of cultural clash. The woman who’s charged with yelling in public is Tierra Allen, better known by her social media influencer name “The Sassy Trucker.” After being a passenger in a rental vehicle that was involved in an accident, she says the rental company employee wouldn’t give her passport and other belongings back unless she paid an undisclosed amount of money.
This is an issue not only in Dubai but in other parts of the world as well. It might not be fair by American standards but when you travel abroad you must set aside your ethnocentricity and realize you’re dealing with another set of customs which might seem odd or even grossly unfair.
To be honest, many foreigners find videos of Americans yelling and screaming at fast food employees, not to mention hitting them and climbing over the counter while trashing the restaurant, horrifying. We do as well, but sometimes we think the US has done a poor job of enforcing civility in public settings. On the other hand, we’re not a fan of getting caned by authorities for spitting gum on the sidewalk, but we sure would watch our actions while visiting other countries, especially those notorious for strict laws.
Allen has been detained for the past two months and she’s been told there might be a prison sentence in her future. We can only imagine how scary that is. At the same time, we can’t stress enough to readers who travel abroad that when you visit other countries you are a guest and need to act accordingly. Entitled behavior, which is so prevalent in our modern society, doesn’t fly in a lot of other places.
Hopefully a resolution is found soon. In the meantime, as you can see in the Fox 26 Houston report, Allen’s family is falling back on accusations of sexism, saying women can’t speak up in public in the UAE and don’t enjoy the same rights as men in the country. Whether that’s true or not, we recommend doing your research about local laws and customs before visiting another nation. If you don’t like them, don’t visit. This assailing the UAE with accusations of sexism could in fact backfire for Allen and that would be unfortunate.
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