Quote · The Moth
Cotton Candy and Revolutionary Rides: The Moth Radio Hour
Where this was said
Post-Story Interview: Was It Worth It?
At 53:55 · chapter starts 52:25
Sarah Austin Jenness draws Bushra back out in a post-story interview. Are women still biking? No, Bushra says — the Houthis are stronger now, controlling more of the city and country, and women are more frightened. She compares the situation to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Was the ride worth risking her life? Definitively yes. [1] — Bushra Al-Fusail "The Houthi rebels are stronger now and women's rights in Yemen have retreated. But Bushra Al-Fusail says the ride was absolutely worth it: …" 52:35 The campaign gave Yemeni women proof that biking is possible — just not while the rebels control the streets. 'As soon as they're not controlling the city, this is an option for them.' Jenness probes her nerves of steel; Bushra admits she was terrified, panicking, fully aware that the women could have been shot, beaten, or kidnapped. But she reasoned: 'Either we're going to die from airstrikes or from these people. So I decided at least doing whatever I want to have — that's my right.' When you know something is your right, she concludes, you are not that afraid. She describes her favorite photograph: abayas flying behind bicycle wheels, with a mosque in the background. She never imagined she would see it. She felt like she was in a dream.
The Houthi rebels are stronger now and women's rights in Yemen have retreated. But Bushra Al-Fusail says the ride was absolutely worth it: women across Yemen now know that biking is possible — and when the rebels lose control, that possibility will be remembered. It was worth the risk. It was worth the fear. It was worth doing.
