A busy Monday in Meknes!
My day started off on a pretty intriguing note with a
discussion about sexual harassment. The ELAP students and a group of Moroccan
students gathered in the ISA office for a group discussion led by Mouhsine. The
purpose of the session was to have students of both cultures sound off about
sexual harassment in general, but more specifically the attention that females receive
on the streets here in Morocco. It did end up being a little heated, but that’s
to be expected almost anytime you tread the waters of this topic. I’ll admit
that the conversation was a little frustrating for me, because I could see that
there are certain elements of the harassment type behavior that are too ingrained
in the culture to be seen as harmful. Some of the comments from the boys were
that if the attention is positive, than women shouldn’t be offended by it. It
was a good opportunity for some of us from the other perspective to weigh in on
the fact that any unwanted attention is negative. I think the personal issue I
have with the male/female dynamic here is this: If I were a man, I could walk
down the street unaccompanied without concern for where my eyes make contact or
how passersby see me. As a woman, I am unable to exercise that right, and am
forced to build a wall and carry it with me every time I enter the street. And
while the boys insisted that the attention is usually harmless and “just for
sport,” I don’t think they completely realize the pressure this places on every
encounter a woman has. Because when you cannot tell the difference between “sport”
and threat, everything becomes a potential danger.
After the rousing ELAP discussion, I headed over to IPDF for
my last day of work with my very good friend Soukaina. She was also interning
at the association, but finished today and will be leaving to travel very soon.
I am so grateful for her kindness and translating – I could not have survived
in the placement I so desperately wanted to be in without her. I hope that we
will be able to see each other again someday.
This evening a few friends and I braved the Medina for some souvenir
shopping. I’ve never been to the shops in the evening before and it is a whole
other animal. Walking through the narrow alleys is a bit like trying to push
your way to the front row at a sold out, standing-room only concert. But it’s absolutely exhilarating, and one of
those moments that makes you think “holy crap, I am not in Kansas anymore.” We
got a lot of good shopping down with our semi-effective haggling skills. The
funniest moment of the evening by far came out of my bullheaded determination
to find a place to buy wool yarn. We looked forever, and then decided to ask a
vendor (who is a friend of Mouhsine’s) if he would show us the way. I followed
him through what I can only describe as a crack in the wall to a little alcove
where a very small old man was working on a loom. They had a heated five minute
discussion which seemed a little intense to be about yarn, but the next thing I
knew the vendor was handing me a bag of random spools and telling me to give
the man 50dh before he changed his mind. At this point, I was pretty sure I was
experience my first ever drug deal, so I gave him the bill and left quickly and
quietly. Luckily, the bag was in fact full of yarn and not any questionable
substances, so I chalked it up to another memorable cultural experience. I was
just excited to have the materials for a little plan I have cooking up.
We finished off the night with a snack of fresh corn on the
cob and fruit juice. Then it was back to the apartment to get ready to do it
all again tomorrow!
Until then.
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