Happy Ramadan!
It has reached that time of year when millions of Muslims participate in Ramadan. Ramadan is a time of prayer, spiritual reflections, community and fasting. From sun up until sun down Muslims abstain from food and water. Fasting is seen as a way to cleanse the soul and practice self control, sacrifice, and empathy for those who are less fortunate. At sunset, once the fifth call to prayer (maghrib) is called, people gather around a table full of food prepared especially for Ramadan and begin the breaking of fast. This practice lasts for an entire month. An entire month of self discipline during the day, and gathering with the community in the evening. There is a lot that non-Muslim countries can learn from these practices.
Project update - Mama Bears:
I had a little more pep in my step as I was walking to my village, Ait Yahya Oualla. The wheels in my head were turning, as I was thinking about all the possible directions Amalna Maroc could go. Thinking about that big beautiful “Moroccan rug” Nora and I are weaving over the Mid Atlas region had me buzzing with joy.
I walked into the cooperative and gave my rounds of kisses to the women (it’s custom to say hello to every single person in the room with either a handshake or a kiss on the cheek followed by a “Salam alaikum” - peace be upon you). Nora and Fatima, the president of the sewing cooperative, were in the middle of a deep brainstorming session.
It had been two days since Nora and I had visited the cooperative in Souk Lhad. Nora had relayed the success of that weaving cooperative to them. “They don’t have to rely on their husbands for money at all!!!” Nora told them, their eyes widened in disbelief. The idea that you could create an income from weaving when provided the right resources seemed impossible.
*There are two important points that I’ve learned from Mostafa (he supports Souk Lhad) when asked why many Moroccans don't buy Moroccan rugs. Number 1: “Every household has at least one woman who knows how to weave. Why would you buy a rug when your grandma is a weaver?” said Mostafa. Number 2: The Moroccans that do buy rugs buy them for a very low price and then double the price in the city markets. The middle man makes most of the profit and weavers hardly anything. Those two reasons are why so many women struggle with making a living off their weaving and have lost the motivation to sell their products. However, if they are able to sell to the overseas market without a middle man it's a whole different story.
I sat down at the table. Nora and Fatima both turn to me saying “Audrey, what do you think about doing a weaving cooperative here??” “Yeah, why not?!” I replied. Big smiles appear across Fatima and Nora's faces. Fatima starts rattling off the names of all the old weavers in our village. “Let’s go see their work!” Nora yelled out as she popped out of her seat.
We started running through the village knocking on the women’s doors, barging through the house. “We're starting a weaving cooperative and you're going to be part of it.” The women pulled rug after rug after rug off their shelves, most over 30 years old. As Nora and I examined their work and explained to them the plan, you could feel the energy in the room shift. As if we were lighting a fire to awake a sleeping bear. A spark here and a spark there. Before we knew it, a big, hot roaring wildfire was running through our village waking up the sleeping Mama bears out of a long, long hibernation!
Within 48 hour the weavers assembled their work space. Dusting off their old supplies, supplies that had been gathering dust for way too long. I watched in awe as the women assembled their standing looms. It was as if they were performing a dance. Walking back and forth as they weave the yarn through the wooden frames. Their hands in synchrony as they tighten various knots. The “Mama Bears'' were ready and hungry for work! Within hours you could hear the same rhythmic pounding sound that we heard in Souk Lhad, but this time it was coming from a place that hadn’t heard this sound in quite some time.
Watching them pound away at their rugs gives me chills throughout my body. The project is working! The sharing of knowledge, sparking new ideas, providing cooperatives with existing and new resources. Giving women that push that they need. It’s all happening right in front of me in real time!
Nora and I have been going back and forth from Fes to learn how we can connect our new weaving cooperative to the world market provided by the Anou. More information on how and when you can buy rugs from them will be sent out. It will take time. As for now the women are working hard through Ramadan as they get their products off the ground.
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If you love the work Amalna Maroc is doing, please consider donating. Amalna Maroc survives and thrives on your donations!!! Donate here.
About Amalna Maroc: Amalna means “Our Hope” in Arabic. Our hope is to advance women’s development in Morocco. A primary focus of Amalna Maroc is to work with women’s cooperatives in Morocco, especially in rural areas, by providing education, resources and support that increase empowerment and economic opportunity for Moroccan women and girls.
Contact Amalna Maroc at amalnamaroc@gmail.com
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