may 22 sexual orientation and gender

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    While studying in Morocco, something that was quickly apparent was the difference in gender roles. As you walk through the streets, most women are expected to cover up, even if they do not follow Islam. On tours, we are expected to wear "respectful" clothing, but men do not have to alter what they wear.  Religion has a much bigger influence on gender roles in Morocco than in America. 
    When passing a cafe or restaurant, you mostly see men sitting outside enjoying the sunshine. Women are rarely out in the open enjoying themselves. They are mostly seen caring for children or working. Women are still seen as manager of the home. Even though women are legally considered equal to men, societal traditions/norms keep women behind men in many ways. 
  Today when visiting the argon co-op, they had jobs strictly for women. When we were trying to crack the argon nuts, the boys could not try, just the girls. We do not have this in the US and it was a big surprise and culture shock for me. 
    In Morocco, same sex marriage is still not legalized. Transgender practices are still not legal either, and after doing research I found that people are still not sure when these laws will ever change. 
    I was expecting Morocco to have more traditional values than we have in the US, but I was still shocked to see the polarizing difference between the two countries. 



Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom. One Small Step for Women’s Rights, One Giant Leap for Morocco. 15 Mar. 2023, https://www.freiheit.org/morocco/one-small-step-womens-rights-one-giant-leap-morocco.

Comments

  1. Clara ForehandMay 24, 2025 at 10:11 PM

    I also noticed this! Even on my first day here in Morocco, I noticed that there seemed to be very few women sitting in the cafes we walked by. This was definitely a culture shock for me as well because I don't think I've ever been in a similar setting. Although women legally have equality in many ways here, it seems there is still some progress to be made. Do you think Morocco will continue to shift away from its more traditional norms for women?

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  2. Reagan BaldreeMay 25, 2025 at 2:13 AM

    I think the strides that Morocco has taken in recent years has been amazing for women, but I agree that there are still changes that I wish to see. Many of the topics you touched on, same sex marriage, job roles, roles in the home, etc are just a few. Have you considered or thought about if there will be changes of this kind during the current king's reign or do you think it will take longer than that to gain these rights for the people?

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