Talking About Sexual Harrasment: Amazing New Resource

Breaking the Silence About Sexual Harassment: Moroccans Speak Out is ready!

What Is It? 

New tools for PCVs in Morocco to kick start conversation about Sexual Harassment with their communities. The whole package includes:

• Videos: A three part video featuring Moroccans talking about sexual harassment was produced by GlobalGirl Media in partnership with the GAD Committee. This is a video by Moroccans, for Moroccans. Each part is about 10 minutes long and you can easily show it in three parts or all at once.
• Toolkit: Discussion questions and activities to accompany the video.
• Posters: Want to publicize your screening? We've got posters available for you to put up.
• Music: Original music composed especially for this video! MP3 files and lyric sheets are available.

Resources are in Arabic, English and French.

How Do I Get It?

Of course you are wondering "How do I get my hands on these amazing resources?" The Peace Corps library in Rabat has bound, hard copy toolkits and DVDs aplenty. You can take one for your own use and if you know of any associations or organizations that might use them, grab a copy for them too.

The USBs, containing all the resources in electronic format, are slightly fewer in number so you need to check them out of the library and promise to return them so we can have them available for those who come after you.

The resources are also available online on GAD Maroc Google Drive.

What Do I Do With It?

The toolkit guides you through showing and using the resources in your community. After you show the video, please let us know how it goes. What worked, what didn't? What could be better? We want this to be a resource for some time to come and the PCVs who come after you will benefit from your experience. Email us with your feedback. 

Who Made This Video?

This video is an amazing initiative with participants from Morocco, the international NGO GlobalGirl Media, the PC Morocco GAD Committee and oodles of PCVs and PC Staff in Morocco. Moroccan women from GlobalGirl Media drove the project from start to finish, creating a project that is truly "By Moroccans, for Moroccans."

Watch it, use it.

New Toolkit! Talking About Violence Against Women

Two important days are coming up that give Peace Corps Volunteers the perfect opportunity to discuss the global problem of violence against women.

• International Men's Day is November 19 and a great opportunity to engage men in the important work of eliminating violence against women.

• International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women is November 25. Last year, to encourage participation in International Day of the Elimination of Violence Against Women, Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon reminded the world: "Millions of women and girls around the world are assaulted, beaten, raped, mutilated or even murdered in what constitutes appalling violations of their human rights...We must fundamentally challenge the culture of discrimination that allows violence to continue. On this International Day, I call on all governments to make good on their pledges to end all forms of violence against women and girls in all parts of the world, and I urge all people to support this important goal." 

As PCVs in Morocco, we can help support ending violence against women. Engage with men, boys, women, and girls in your site with GAD's brand new Violence Against Women (VAW) Toolkit! Through this toolkit participants will discuss domestic violence and be empowered to help end the cycle of violence. 

Artisan Camp in Tameslouht: Keeping Girls in Touch with Traditional Moroccan Crafting

By Sarah Quinn, PCV

Why are younger women less interested in traditional crafts and what can we do to change that?

This was the question that ultimately led to our Artisan Camp in Tameslouht this summer.

Our plan: for 10 days approximately 40 young women (late teens to early 20s) would work on learning traditional Moroccan crafts directly from artisans themselves: Fesi embroidery, 3la 7sab embroidery, crochet, or basket embellishment. Thanks to a grant through World Connect, we even had funding to cover the many necessary supplies.

In addition to learning and practicing the crafts, we planned workshops, led by both PCVs and local community leaders, to put traditional crafts into a 21st century context—topics included marketing, color theory, accounting…all of those business-y things that are so important this day in age for both product development and selling.

The last day would be an open house for the young women’s moms, an opportunity to bring the women of the community together and celebrate their daughters’ hard work.

As all PCVs know, the best laid plans usually don’t go as planned. So when it turned out that the group of campers who showed up numbered 75, not 40, and were in the 10-12 year old age range rather than the 16-25 age range, we had some re-organizing to do. Like scrapping our intensive workshop on bookkeeping.

No worries though: the girls embraced crafting whole-heartedly. And the workshops, adjusted for the audience, were wonderful.

First up was Returned PCV Heather from Mushmina and Kenza, one of the artisans she works with. They talked to the girls about product development and how their amazing company started from just a simple idea. After their presentation, the girls drew personality webs and jotted down all of the adjectives that they would use to describe themselves.

Other workshop leaders included Naima Kassi, a clothing designer from Marrakech, Hassania Ayoubi, a university student studying Human Development, Abdelatif Jâaidi, the President of the Associations’ Space of the El Haouz province, and Naima Wahmane, an artist from Amizmiz, Malika Kassi, a representative from the High Atlas Foundation, two representatives from the Moroccan Ministry of Artisana, and lastly, Zakia Lemerini, the president of the Gueliz commune and the president of the Nakhla Association for Women and Children.

On days without workshops, the afternoons were dedicated to watching the “You Can Dream” video, having a recycled-goods Project Runway, designing a mural, and lots of games. And when a planned for speaker didn’t show up? The girls grabbed their materials and jumped back into crafting without being asked. 

Of course no camp is complete with a closing party. On the final day, moms and younger siblings came to celebrate, see their fruits of their daughters’ labor, and meet the camp leaders. Zakia spoke about being treated differently than her brothers growing up, but not letting this taste of inferiority define her life. She chose to study a male-dominated field, geology, that left her spending nights by herself in the mountains. After all of this, she said, I didn’t turn out badly– I still got married, I still had kids, I still was able to do all of those tasks that so traditionally define women. At the same time, I was able to continue my career as a geologist, become a college professor, become the president of the Gueliz commune, and start an association for women and children.

This message seemed to crop up throughout the camp, both directly and indirectly– not necessarily that these girls should buck the system and never get married and define their lives by their careers, but that they should be able to have the skills and the confidence to make that choice if they wanted to. For those who do make that choice, traditional crafts are a potential income-generating activity that doesn’t really require women to leave the house. Working on Fesi embroidery can be accomplished in one’s pajamas, watching TV. It’s a ridiculously simple and effective model for women who either want to or have to get married and stay home with their kids.

But artisan skills, the original goal of the camp, almost became of secondary importance when we saw how positively the girls responded to the strong, independent, successful women who led workshops throughout the 10 days. Some of these women managed to play the traditional role of wife and mother while doing something 110% for themselves, whether it was working for Mushmina, like Kenza, or starting an association, like Zakia. Others, like both Naimas, Malika, and Hassania, are unmarried and spending their time pursuing something that they find to be of value, both to themselves and to society. Meanwhile, our girls were learning to think creatively, solve problems independently as they arose within their work, to recognize opportunities for them to step up as leaders, and to have the confidence to take that crucial step.

And thus, certificates were handed out, tears were shed, and we closed out the camp with lots of the adorable girls asking when the next camp would be. That’s probably a good sign.

To learn more about Sarah’s camp, and to see a bunch more adorable pictures, read the full post on her blog.

VOTE! 2013 Theme Contest Part Deux!

Earlier this year, due to the popularity of 2012's theme contest, we decided to create two theme contests for 2013.  For the first half of 2013, you voted for the 5k Run & Fun Walk toolkit. Many volunteers and even more Moroccans tied their laces and took off with this toolkit, and the GAD committee appreciates everyone's enthusiastic participation.  Expect a finalized version of the toolkit by early October.

The theme for the second half of 2013 is being chosen now – BY YOU! You proposed many amazing ideas and the GAD committee selected five different theme ideas for YOU TO VOTE ON (available on the website and facebook)! And as always, we want your input. If you have another idea, pass it along so that it can be included in the 1st round of themes for 2014. Don’t delay, voting ends Sept 10th!  Click the link below to vote.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1uRCVIx5wdvViS-GKO3uC-CLeb4-IugqH74FQnlJgftE/viewform

GAD at Camp

Ouled Teima

At the Ouled Teima summer camp (Souss-Massa-Drâa region) PCVs Johanna Boyle and Caitlin Stechschulte utilized the Picture Perspective activity in the new GAD at Camp toolkit.

This activity challenges participants to analyze gender roles and stereotypes in society and how they influence perceptions as well as encourages participants to reflect on their own gender roles and opportunities.

For the activity, each participant received a selected magazine clipping that was purposefully gender neutral (ie identifying body parts that associate the person as being male or female were not included) and they were directed to complete the picture with the materials provided.  Everyone appeared to really enjoy the activity and some great discussion ensued about the pictures that they created and gender roles within Moroccan society.

Zaio

Far north in the Rif region, PCVs Courtney Haueter, Tiffany Devoy, and Meg Fowler wanted to incorporate discussions about gender into the Zaio camp's theme of building employment and job seeking skills for young adults. It turns out that with just a few tweaks to the original discussion questions, the You Can Dream video is a great springboard for talking about entrepreneurship as well as women in nontraditional fields of work. Both the men and the women participating in camp found lots to talk about after watching the video and it sparked an interesting conversation around what is appropriate work for women and how camp participants view taking risk and striking out on your own versus striving for more secure employment.

These are just two examples of great GAD-related work done by PCVs in the field this summer. If you have more stories of how PCVs have incorporated GAD activities into their camps, let us know!

CPR in Region Six...and Beyond!

By Sandy Levinn, PCV
 
One fine, spring day, almost 3 weeks after I arrived in my sunny little corner of the desert, I found my mudir happily grinning down at me from the pile of rubble where our Dar Chebab had stood solidly the day before. “What happened?” I gasped, surprised and alarmed. “We are renovating the Dar Chebab,” quoth he, excited to the point of giggling. “It will be closed until August, or perhaps October. I’m thinking of taking a temporary job at the Commune; what will you do?”

And so, three weeks into my service and already out of work, I remembered a ToT that I had attended in Tinghir the week before. The topic was CPR and First Aid, and it was led, in English, by Nurin, a COS-ing health volunteer. The participants were 6 Moroccan students with good English, and the idea was to provide them with first aid skills, which they would then translate into Darija and teach in their communities. The first aid portion of the session was long and language intensive, but the group brightened as soon as we began teaching CPR. CPR is engaging, hands on, and highly demonstrable. Despite the serious application of the subject matter, everyone had fun practicing on each other and our makeshift dummies and – even better! – we were confident that everyone understood exactly what we were teaching. Recalling this trifecta of easy information transfer, important and applicable subject matter, and entertaining practical evaluation, I decided to go for it myself.

Once I made that decision, I very quickly booked myself a CPR tour of some local PCV sites, motivated by a combination of restlessness in my site (where I was assured at every turn that I would not have work until the fall) and simple convenience. If I was accompanying 50 youths from Alnif to participate in the 5k Rose Festival kick-off race in Kelaat Magouna anyway, why not stay an extra day or two and teach some CPR? If I was already going to be on the road, why not visit my friend and CBT-mate in Goulmima and commandeer his youth for a little life-saving lesson? If I was going to be out there anyway, why not extend the offer to my friends in Tinjdad and, just down the road, Nimro? I left most of the work to my hosts: they communicated with organizations in their sites, made arrangements for locations, found me my audience, and provided the requisite three 2-liter Coke bottles that would serve as our dummies. All I had to do was come up with a curriculum and teach it!

Once I had everything all set and translated (after an eleventh hour translation meeting with some of the original youth from Nurin’s ToT to check my work and a quick little broken taxi detour), I left my completely unfurnished house and began what ended up being both the most terrifying and most exciting week of my service to date. My first class was to be for a women’s association in a douar outside of Kelaat Magouna; what we did not know was that this was to be the first meeting of the association, beginning with some lengthy bureaucratic discussion and capping out at over 50 women in one tiny little room. When the time finally came for me to speak, it only took a few words to make it clear that I did not have a very good handle on the Darija, and nor did the women. Fortunately, we had an English teacher present, so I led my first class in English with Tamazight translation generously provided by the teacher. This doubled the length of the class, and after their long preliminary meeting, the women were anxious to get home. There were too many of them for

individual practice with the Santa-hat-clad teddy bear that was our infant dummy, nor was there enough space for them to practice the Heimlich on each other. Most of their questions were about nosebleeds, not CPR. My advice to call for help before beginning CPR (the most important step!) was met with laughing assurances that the ambulance would not arrive to their bumpy little douar for several hours, if at all. The Darija reference handout I had made was politely made available to the Tamazight-speaking, possibly illiterate women. It was a bit of a struggle to consider that first class a success, but it was a place to start.

After that, I revised my curriculum. Rather than read off a script, I focused on remembering key vocab words with the script as my security blanket off to the side. The Darija handout now has diagrams. I rearranged the content so that the Heimlich came first, and CPR was introduced as a solution in the event that choking led to unconsciousness (choking and drowning are the circumstances in which CPR is most likely to be successful without professional assistance and an AED). The next class, with about twenty older youth at the Dar Chebab, went much more smoothly, right up until the part when one of the students asked what they should say if their patient died and the police wanted to take them to jail. From this, I gained the painfully obvious insight that it is important to research the local laws before embarking on a project that may be illegal. Fortunately, when I arrived for my class in Goulmima (at this point seriously doubting whether I should continue teaching CPR at all), I was met by a member of the Red Crescent who thoroughly combed through my whole curriculum before allowing the class to begin. With my most sincere hamdullah to date, I gratefully confirmed that, as long as I was CPR certified and not actually certifying anyone else, there was no legal obstacle for me to continue with my tour. As we were leaving that class, my Red Crescent friend was discussing the possibility of forming a health club.

In Tinjdad, my first group was young enough that I felt uncomfortable teaching them CPR. Instead, Dan Wood taught an English lesson on body parts, and we followed that up with a simple demonstration of the Heimlich and a discussion about how to make an effective phone call to emergency services. The next day, I worked with an intimate group of just 6 beautiful women from a nearby sewing cooperative, and then with a larger group of women at the Dar Taqafa in the afternoon. I could not have asked for a better final day; the women were attentive and all showed a good understanding of the material through both verbal and practical demonstrations. I finally had the presentation down well enough that the Darija felt relatively natural, and the women helped each other understand my clumsy accent and stumbling tongue. No one suggested that anything I did or said might be illegal, and as I left I was approached by an association president who wanted a CPR class for his constituents as well. All told, we reached 158 women and youth (calculations brought to you by my trusty VRF!).

I returned to my site to find that my counterparts were jealous (in spite of their previous insistence that there was no space for me to work until October) and my CPR certification was about to expire. I contacted my Red Crescent friend from Goulmima about possible recertification, and was disappointed to hear that the Red Crescent will not certify Americans. They might give me an attestation that I had attended the class, he suggested, but it would not necessarily amount to the same thing. This meant not only that I could not teach CPR in my site, but also that no other volunteers without up to date CPR certification could use the (updated and completely legal!) curriculum I had developed to reach their communities. When I expressed my frustration to my parents, my chief-of-the-ambulance dad said simply, “I could certify them.”

This brings us to the present day. My parents are here! In Morocco! With me! Just two days after they stepping off the plane they are ready to lead an American Heart Association approved CPR certification course for 39 PCVs and a handful of LCFs using a very Peace Corps blend of mandated AHA materials and recycled soda bottle dummies. They are cheerfully donating vacation time and resources so that we can reach more people in more remote towns with skills that, ensha’allah, they will never have to use. If the need arises, however, they may well save someone’s life.

Souss Girls' Soccer Camp 2013

For a girl who wants to play soccer in rural Morocco, the opportunities are very slim. Though soccer is the national sport in Morocco, loved and watched by all, playing the sport remains almost entirely in the realm of men and boys. That’s largely because girls’ sports, especially girls’ soccer, are viewed in most of Morocco as anywhere from a waste of time at best, to inappropriate and even shameful at worst. It’s not that girls don’t want to play soccer – ask any young girl here and she’ll tell you – but that their attempts to do so are too often thwarted, by everything from lack of supportive adults, lack of team opportunities, cultural pressures, lack of supplies, harassment, and more.

Spontaneous dance party at the Souss Girls' Soccer Camp

In an effort to remedy all this, a number of PCVs in Morocco have started or helped bolster existing girls’ soccer clubs/teams in their sites. At a brainstorming session during a regional meeting in October, a number of us recognized the need for bolstering girls’ soccer on a region-wide level, through some sort of collaborative activity that would increase soccer skills, bring together like-minded girls, and provide positive role models for young girl soccer players. We wanted a way for the girls to feel supported and empowered in standing up to a culture that frowned upon their soccer playing, on a much broader scale than any single PCV could accomplish. A few minutes of conversation later, the idea for the Souss Girls’ Soccer Camp was born
.

The Beginning

Our first few months working to organize the camp were rough, despite initial support from local officials. After months of waiting for an answer, the Ministry of Youth and Sports denied our request for securing a field and lodging, despite a longstanding partnership with Peace Corps in coordinating camps for youth. Our counterparts at the delegation dropped out after that piece of bad news, and we were left frantically searching for community partners and a space to hold the camp with only a few months to go until the planned dates of the camp. The breakthrough occurred when we contacted Intilaqa, a local association focused on youth activities that works in the town of a nearby volunteer. Intilaqa agreed to partner with us, and soon they had secured both the field and the Dar Talib next door for housing during the camp. They helped with all elements of camp planning and implementation from that point forward, from logistics to staff to Arabic translation.

Some of the girls of AMJAD and their coaches

Around the same time we were looking for space, I contacted AMJAD, the women’s professional soccer team based in nearby Taroudant. From the very first meeting I had with AMJAD, sitting in a circle on their soft turf field after their Friday practice, they were enthusiastic about the idea and fully willing to help. From that point onward, I was continually amazed by AMJAD’s trusting, enthusiastic, no-questions-asked commitment to help with the camp. It was clear that they were invested in the success of the camp and of our region-wide girls’ soccer initiative. Still, I was surprised when, after asking for an estimate of the number of girls they’d be bringing to the camp, they responded that they’d like to bring the ENTIRE team. I was floored; I’d expected a hesitant number, perhaps 5 or 6, and they’d offered the entire 18 person team! In the end, it was ME that had to dial it back, as we only had space for around 10 coaches in the camp facility. After that meeting, I knew for sure that AMJAD would be solid support for the camp, and when we finally began a few months later, I saw just how amazing AMJAD would truly be.

The Campers Arrive

The banner at the camp entrance

The 48 campers who participated were from 4 burgeoning soccer teams from 4 small PCV sites in the region – Tafraoute, Ikhorbane, Temsia, and my site, Sebt el-Guerdane – with each town bringing 11-14 girls to the camp. Some girls had a decent amount of soccer experience, and had even played as part of a team before, while others were just starting out as soccer players. Some girls were more confident than others, and some came from more conservative or liberal families than others. Some had soccer outfits and good shoes to play in, while others were making due with what little they had. What all the girls had in common, though, was a strong desire to play soccer, and a general lack of opportunities for them to play in their communities.

The camp was 6 days long, beginning with the girls’ arrival on Sunday afternoon and ending with the girls; departure the following Saturday morning. We had the full-sized soccer stadium of Temsia reserved for our use for the week, as well as the Dar Talib (boarding house) next door, where the girls ate and slept. Each day started out with morning soccer training on the field followed by a workshop on soccer strategy, both led by AMJAD. The afternoons consisted of a health workshop lead by PCVs, followed by a second training on the field, and some free time for the girls. In the evenings, the counselors put together various fun activities for the girls, such as games, songs, talent shows, etc.

The Coaches

AMJAD's captain leading a workshop on soccer strategy

Although the girls seemed to enjoy all of the activities, it was clear that AMJAD’s contribution was by far the most successful part of the camp. AMJAD brought 9 of their players and 2 of their coaches to lead the soccer training and strategy portion of the camp. Although we knew they would be great as coaches for the girls, our expectations were blown away when we saw how animated, enthusiastic, and creative they were throughout the camp. The soccer training sessions they led were incredibly organized and well-run: The field was divided up into 4 mini-fields, one for each of the 4 groups of girls we had at the camp. AMJAD split up amongst the 4 groups, giving each group 2-3 AMJAD players to act as their coaches throughout the week. Each training session consisted of warm-ups, calisthenics, and drills to focus on specific skills, such as passing, control, shooting, etc.

AMJAD also brought all of their gear with them, so the trainings were complete with plenty of balls, cones, pinnies, nets, etc. They were serious, thorough, realistic soccer trainings – the first that most of the girls at the camp had ever been a part of. It was such an inspiring sight to finally see the girls and their soccer skills taken seriously by a group of people, especially in such a conservative region that consistently frowns upon girls’ sports in general and girls’ soccer in particular.

Though they were serious coaches on the field, AMJAD could always be found singing, drumming, starting chants, joking, and generally having a blast with the girls after practices, during free time, at meals, and in any other spaces in-between. Though they’d never done it before, it turned out they were natural camp leaders and youth developers! The girls quickly fell in love with AMJAD, as evidenced by the applause and chants of “Olay AMJAD Olay!” the girls greeted them with any time they walked into a room. In addition to being great coaches and friends, it was clear that the AMJAD players were role models to the girls, most of whom had never before met a woman who played sports professionally. In fact, one of the sessions the girls were the most excited about was on the first night of camp, when the AMJAD players hosted an open question and answer session with the girls about soccer, their lives, and women’s soccer in Morocco. It was clear that the girls loved the chance to get to know and pick the brains of women who had not only gone against the norm and played soccer, but had gone so far as to do it professionally.

AMJAD taking questions from the girls

A few girls with their AMJAD coach for the week

A Deeper Meaning

As I watched the girls on the field, dressed in color-coordinated pinnies, concentrating on weaving their balls through cones, the constant encouragement of their AMJAD coaches nearby, I couldn’t help but think about the stark contrast with the soccer practices we hold in my site: Though it is an accomplishment that we play at all, we are sadly relegated to the weed- and rock-covered side field next to the main field; we only have 1 ball, which my mudir neglects to properly inflate 50% of the time; we have no cones, pinnies, or nets, and make due with rocks for goal posts. All of this goes on while the boys play next to us on the main field, decked out in uniforms and with multiple balls, nets, whistles, everything they need. On top of it all, the girls and I frequently get harassed and mocked while we play, by young boys and grown men alike, who apparently aren’t comfortable with the idea of girls playing soccer at all, even if on a disheveled side field with no equipment. The entire scene sends a strong message to the girls: you are not welcome here. You are not taken seriously, especially not as soccer players. Nobody cares. Week after week, that scene has broken my heart. But that week, at the Souss Girls Soccer camp, with AMJAD coaches, a full field, equipment, and serious training sessions, the girls were finally given the opposite message: We take you seriously. We care about you. We want to see you play well. We want to see you have fun. You matter. And that simple fact illustrated the entire reason why this camp was worthwhile – and about more than just soccer.

The Health Factor

Nutrition and exercise workshop

We filled the time during the afternoon heat with a series of health workshops organized by PCVs. The first, led by Emily and John, focused on nutrition and exercise. The girls learned about the food groups, talked about the food pyramid, and played games to test their knowledge. The second was led by ALCS, a Moroccan HIV/AIDS awareness organization, who brought 3 women in to talk to the girls in a culturally appropriate way. I led the 3rd workshop, which was about self-esteem and societal standards of beauty. The girls talked about how they felt when they looked at themselves in the mirror, how standards of
beauty are formed, inner and outer beauty, and more. At the end, they wrote poems about all the things that make them who they are. The workshops were really successful, and I’m proud of the girls for keeping up the energy to participate during that difficult time of day!

Writing poems during the self-esteem workshop

HIV/AIDS workshop

Field Trip to the Beach

On Wednesday, we took a break from our regular schedule and took a trip to the beach. For some of the girls, particularly those from the mountain town of Tafraoute, it was the first time they’d ever seen the ocean! We went to a lesser-known beach outside Agadir, where we were able to claim an entire section of beach for the campers to relax and play. In between lounging, games, and swimming, AMJAD led a full-blown soccer training on the beach, complete with exercises, drills, and matches! It was truly an awesome site to see. Later, after a late lunch of fresh fish at the marina, we went for a tour of the brand new world-class soccer stadium in Agadir. It’s a stadium that soccer players from all around the world will play on, and it was really exciting for the girls to get a private tour. At the end of our time there, the mudir of the stadium surprised us by giving a little speech about women’s sports and civic participation in Morocco. He told the girls how the stadium was a project of the ministry of culture, the head of which (and thus his boss) is a woman. He then said, (roughly paraphrased and translated from Arabic), “I don’t want you all to look at this stadium and think, ‘Oh, this is great and all, but its just for boys.’ No, this stadium is yours too, and you should believe that you have every right to be here and play here as boys.” It goes without saying that his statements were met with much applause.

Looking Forward

By the end of the week, it was clear we had accomplished something amazing with the Souss Girls’ Soccer camp. As they played their final matches, the girls were visibly more confident, skilled, and enthusiastic about soccer than they’d been on the first day. Girls from different towns who had just met days before walked around arm in arm like sisters. When AMJAD pulled out their drums and started playing, the girls felt the freedom to let loose and dance freely in a space they felt they owned. Perhaps most indicative was the number 1 question asked by the girls on the last day: “When will next year’s camp be?”

Looking forward, AMJAD has already stressed on multiple occasions their desire to do the camp next year; they want to not only coach, but take ownership and run the camp. It’s too soon to tell, but it’s looking like this project could become something not only successful, but sustainable into the future as well. A yearly regional soccer camp, sponsored and led by the country’s leading professional women’s soccer team: that’s something amazing to look forward to.

Our goal had been to lead a girls’ camp that would foster empowerment through sports, give the girls a safe space to practice soccer, and develop region-wide enthusiasm about girls’ soccer; looking around, it was impossible not to see that we had succeeded, thanks to amazing work done by AMJAD, Intilaqa, and all our other Moroccan partners.

GLOW Camp Gourrama

PCV Rienna Thomas in Gourrama is doing a GLOW Camp this week! After planning this camp for over three months, lining up Moroccan women as speaker and counselors, signing up ten PCVs to help out and signing up 60 girls, Rienna was told that the building wasn’t available for a girls' camp. The day before most of us were planning to travel to Gourrama Rienna had to make phone calls and cancel the camp. There was miscommunication between delegues about exam schedules and the availability of the boarding school. Luckily, she was able to rectify the miscommunication with the help of her mudir, Rachid Ghanimi, and reschedule the camp for this week. Rachid has been very supportive of the camp, even though he couldn’t attend himself. Their hard work has really paid off. The girls are having a blast!

While it's challenging to get everything prepared to do a girls-only camp, it's really worth the effort. In my talks with the girls one of their favorite things about the camp is that it's girls-only. Moroccan girls don't have many spaces that are only for them. They appreciate being able to, literally, let their hair down and not have to worry about being perfectly modest all the time. They appreciate being able to wear something comfortable and not stress over being in a public, male-dominated space. Rienna has done a great job fending off well-intended Moroccan men who have volunteered to come and help out or speak to the group. This camp is all for girls; and that’s important.

We have 45 girls from Gourrama and the surrounding area participating this week along with 20 Moroccan ladies leading sessions or being involved in some way. We even had PCV Nicole Brenner's lovely mother Susan join us and join in the fun!

The girls arrived in the afternoon so the first day was mostly getting to know you games and setting up camp rules. The camp is on day three and the girls have already heard from a successful female business owner in Gourrama about how she decided to create her business and what has helped her to become successful. The girls also broke into groups and created a business plan and discussed with the group what was necessary to make a business work. We've also discussed self-esteem and how to build up your friends rather than tear them down.

We attempted to play GLOW Olympics, complete with water balloon toss, three-legged race and tug-o-war, but the rain hit about that time and the thunder and lightning forced us inside. In Morocco it's necessary to always have a backup plan, right? The Olympics were moved back into the evening and the water balloon toss and other games were played indoors, but a lot of fun was had.

Other events planned for this week include GLOW sessions on goal-setting, the environment, health, career planning and empowerment. We also will be doing a talent show, a movie night, and a henna competition. In addition, we'll be doing arts and crafts, playing board games and sports, and doing a scavenger hunt.

We're having a great time and feeding off the excitement of the girls. If you get a chance you need to do a GLOW camp you have to take it! It’s an amazing experience for the girls and it’s a lot of fun.

Regional Meeting Roundup

While we didn't have any formal GAD presentations during the recent regional meetings, we were really excited to talk to PCVs individually to hear about the great projects that you are doing and to also hear your feedback on GAD resources. We are always, always wanting to hear from you, so if you have questions, thoughts, feedback or recommendations, please email us to share them!

Some of the MANY AWESOME GAD activities we are hearing about around the country:

* Lots and lots of women's and girls' clubs: All around the country PCVs are creating safe and comfortable spaces for women and girls to express themselves, through fitness and sports, cooking, art, music, leadership programming, health activities, and rich discussions about women's issues.

* Programming with men and boys: Both male and female PCVs have done programming with boys, some using the "Honorable Man" toolkit. We're hoping to work on more resources for you on this!

* GLOW Camps: PCVs worked together on some AWESOME GLOW camps in the last few months, with more to come this summer! Thanks to Gussie for passing along a new GLOW Camp Facilitator Guide, which can now be downloaded on our Resources page.

* Leadership Training: PCVs Meredith Stillwell and Maggie Bridges, along with others in the Tata region, facilitated a series of counterpart-run women's leadership programs. Maggie will be at the new stage's IST to share this awesome program with others! And in Region 2, a number of PCVs sent women from their communities to a leadership training in Rabat in conjunction with the association ADFM and RPCV Katy Howell-Burke. Earlier in the year Katy and ADFM also did this training with PCVs in the Ouarzazate region too.

* Sports and Fitness: Not only are we hearing about aerobics, yoga, and dance classes for girls and women, but lots of PCVs have done or are planning awesome programs in their communities for running, soccer, and basketball!

Some of the GAD feedback we've heard that we'll be discussing in our upcoming June committee meeting:

* More programs/resources for working with men and boys

* Translating as much as we can into Arabic

* Connecting PCVs with GAD-focused NGOs and other organizations throughout the country

* Resources for incorporating GAD into the classroom (within English classes)

* Anything else???? Please email us!

Spring Camp

On the last day of spring camp the children were given permission to explore the city grounds unsupervised.  Everyone seemed to have fun except three girls, who had a different and unfortunate experience.  I noticed one of the girls crying and asked what had happened.  She explained that some boys on the street had called out to her and her friends.  One of the boys grabbed her arm and pulled her in towards him.  Shaken up she finished the story with, “he then unbuttoned his white shirt in front of us.”  My first reaction was to go outside and find the boy that had done this, but luckily my fellow PCVs advised me that I wouldn’t like Moroccan jail very much.

The other PCVs and I started working on what the best course of action should be.  We decided first to call one of the Moroccan staff for guidance, but that quickly resulted in a shouting match and blaming of the girls.  Next, another Moroccan staffer chimed in, and what seemed to be a second shouting match was in fact the other Moroccan staffer explaining that the first Moroccan staffer was wrong for blaming the girls.  None of this was really working because the girls were still crying.  Other fellow campers were also blaming the girls.

Finally, we decided to call Fatima Kamal.  Who better to speak to these girls than a strong, independent, caring woman?  Fatima reassured the girls they did nothing wrong.  Slowly, the tears disappeared and the girls continued to listen silently to Fatima's gentle words.  After the phone call, we explained to the girls that they should ignore the people blaming them and to understand it was not their fault.

As I stood up, I noticed in the room stood five strong, independent caring women surrounding the girls.  At first we had no idea what to do, but we figured it out step by step and what could have been disaster instead became a learning experience.

The tears stopped and the girls ended up joining the party the camp was having and danced with their fellow campers.  The first day of camp, I remember how these same girls were making fun of us and whispering God knows what, but I will take with me the tight hugs, the kisses on our cheeks and the thank yous they gave us on the last day of camp. I wanted to do more, I know we all did but without realizing it we did exactly what was needed.  Sometimes, to truly make a difference, requires only that we be present.  

International Women's Day Success Stories!

All over Morocco, in Dar Chababs, Nedi Neswis, and even the streets of Rabat, Peace Corps Volunteers and Moroccans celebrated International Women’s Day (IWD) on March 8th.

Volunteers participated in a wide variety of activities, fairs, and parties to celebrate Moroccan women. The GAD committee developed a variety of toolkits for IWD including toolkits on leadership, citizenship and volunteerism, women’s empowerment, and harassment. Many PCVs were able to use the toolkits and reported back exciting results!

Over the month of February, Tom and Jan Hunter centered their English classes on themes important to women. All of their classes culminated into a week-long IWD program focusing on women’s health, our GAD movie, and Moroccan women leaders. Many women didn't even know about the new female mayor of Marrakech, but they certainly knew about her after their successful celebration.

The Association Oxygene Ouarzazate and Kathy Howell-Burke organized a hugely successful day focusing on violence against women with over 130 people attending! She wrote about the event: “The Director of the Association Oxygene Ouarzazate (with my assistance) facilitated the screening of a 40-minute documentary titled "From Fear to Freedom: Ending Violence Against Women" by the Women's Learning Partnership. The video covered the various forms of violence, the negative impacts, legal and moral support and resources available, and strategies and partnerships to utilize in order to combat and end violence against women. All of these topics were discussed during the periodic pauses in the video and the guided discussion afterwards. What made this video and experience unique was that the documentary presented violence against women as a "Global Issue" not singling-out one country or culture. Also, the women attendees were able to confidentially voice their experiences, concerns, and ideas on how to proceed forward.”

To recognize IWD, Martha Fedorowicz hosted a two-day women’s festival at her Dar Chabab with a female lawyer, a female doctor, and 86 motivated Moroccan women. The women were able to ask the two professionals anonymous questions about their health and legal rights. The festival also included a panel of women speaking about artisanal works, a play on women’s empowerment, a fashion show, an aerobic workout, and even fit in a party! Martha said that, “the women told me afterward that they really appreciated having this opportunity and felt like they learned a lot of new things that no one had told them before… I think the women really appreciated having the opportunity to ask questions anonymously from both a lawyer and a doctor.”

Michael Willis hosted an event on sexual harassment with 25 women using the GAD committee’s sexual harassment toolkit. After a skit about stopping harassment, the women shared their own experiences with sexual harassment, and created a red stop sign collage loudly proclaiming sexual harassment is unacceptable.

In Berkane, Krista Jorstad put together a leadership skills conference for the women of her Nedi Neswi.  Krista and her counterpart “asked them to think about women leaders in their own lives. Because of their age, most picked their mothers. We then did an art activity to make letters for their moms thanking them for their hard work.” The women then made some artwork for their mothers and watched the “You Can Dream” video. Krista was especially impressed with what happened afterwards: “At one point, several of the participants remarked that Berkane has a lot of educational opportunities for women to improve themselves and they would like to put what they have learned to use by giving back to the community.”

Some volunteers found new counterparts through their IWD events. After co-hosting a launch party for a new association, Carrie Thomson found she, “was impressed by how our new contact was motivated to help her fellow women improve their lives.”

Other volunteers enabled women in their sites to be leaders in their

community. Originally, Leslie Dias planned on facilitating a discussion about sexual harassment using the sexual harassment toolkit provided by the GAD committee. When Leslie shared her materials and ambitions the head of the association she was working with said that she wanted to facilitate the discussions on sexual harassment using the GAD toolkit and her own material. Leslie then led an art activity where women wrote about how they felt about sexual harassment and created a chain against sexual harassment using their papers. Leslie writes, “They were all buzzing and super excited when we finished. They said they hadn't done something that productive with that many young girls in a very long time. We are hoping to re-create the event by doing a one-day workshop once a month with a different theme each month. This particular association was amazing, but it happened to coincide with a day the Nedi Neswi was also holding an event, so hopefully the next one can be even bigger and more inclusive!” Leslie’s event was so successful it even made it into the local newspaper.

Over 45 volunteers hosted International Women’s Day events in their sites. Hundreds of women and men learned about health, leadership, harassment, and their rights. With this knowledge Moroccans can empower the future female teachers, lawyers, doctors, entrepreneurs, and leaders to take even bolder steps in future International Women’s Days.  

Article about Fatima-Zahra Mansouri, mayor of Marrakesh, now translated to Arabic!

Said Ousaka has provided us with a translated copy of the article included in the International Women's Day toolkit! Already included was the article in French, but we had requests for a copy in Arabic.

You can access the full toolkit here, the translated article in Arabic here, and editable posters about the event here.

The GAD committee hopes you had an amazing International Women's Day and were able to spread a little love to the women you know!

Toolkits to help celebrate IWD in Morocco

Peace Corps and the GAD Committee have teamed up with the Division of Feminine Affairs (a group under the Ministry of Youth and Sports who run the Nedi Neswis) to launch a week dedicated to celebrating women and discussing women's issues! Women's Week will start with an event in Sidi Kacem on March 12 and from March 12-19 PCVs in sites all around Morocco will be holding events to celebrate Moroccan women! 

PCVs around Morocco will be holding events to celebrate Moroccan women! If you need last minute ideas, GAD has several resources available to have an event or use in one of your classes anytime in March!

International Women’s Day Program Guide: 5 toolkit activities focusing on empowerment, sexual harassment, leadership, and volunteerism. Also, we have editable versions of the posters.

·       Honorable Man Toolkit: Excellent activity for men and boys!

·       Women’s Health Instructional Booklet: Available in French, English and Arabic!

You Can Dream Video: Stories of successful Moroccan women, in Arabic with English subtitles. Don't forget to download the discussion questions that go along with the video!

Focus on Women's Health

Joelle Jackson partnered with local women in Taznakht in a workshop titled: Women’s Rejuvenation Conference for the Development and Benefit of the Woman, from February 28-March 2. For three days, approximately 80 women from Taznakht and surrounding villages came to learn about important issues affecting Moroccan women, covering topics such as nutrition, exercise, and self esteem. In addition, Oxygen, a women’s advocate organization from Ouarzazate, presented information on Mudawana and women’s rights. A local doctor also presented information about reproductive health and breast cancer. Jackson hopes that the workshop partcipants will share the information with their mothers, daughters, sisters, and grandmothers in their communities.