Slamming the “Continuing” Moroccan Revolution: Noussayba Lahlou’s Bittersweet Verses
| Author(s) |
Maha Tazi |
| Contact |
Maha Tazi, Concordia University, 7141 Sherbrooke St W, Montreal, Canada. E-mail: maha.tazi91@gmail.com |
| Issue |
CyberOrient, Vol. 14, Iss. 1, 2020, pp. 4-43 |
| Published |
June 30, 2020 |
| Type |
Article |
| Abstract |
In this article, I am interested in looking at women‘s current mobilization techniques
in Post-Arab Spring North Africa. To do so, I draw from the existing literature
on the case of Egypt which identifies women’s contemporary resistance in creative
disobedience patterns – that is women’s art activism that advocates, concomitantly,
for social justice and gender equality. In my attempt to fill an existing gap in the
literature, I investigate the existence of such resistance patterns in Morocco, as well
as their main characteristics and country specificities. Because (slam) poetry is
a traditionally resistant genre in the Arab region, I take as a case study Noussayba
Lahlou’s slam poetry to explore the political potential of women’s slams to advocate
for women’s rights and sociopolitical liberties in post-Arab Spring Morocco. To do so,
I conducted a virtual interview with the artist by administering a structured online
questionnaire, alongside a content analysis of eight of her most recent and salient
slams. A 24-years-old slam poet from Morocco, Noussayba’s revolutionary verses
tackle widespread regime abuse and corruption, alongside women’s rights and many
other social woes in the country. |
| Keywords |
Arab Spring, Gender Paradox, Subaltern Counterpublics, Creative Disobedience, Art Activism, Social Justice, Gender Equality
|
