Women in Casablanca March in Shorts in Solidarity With Belgian Volunteers

Rabat – On Saturday, August 10, women in Casablanca took to the streets to march in shorts as an expression of solidarity with the Belgian teens who have been in the headlines recently.

The initiative, dubbed #YesWeShort, has been spurred on by many internet users in response to the harsh social scrutiny and public shaming a group of young Belgian volunteers recently faced for their choice to wear shorts as they helped build a road in Taroudant, in southern Morocco.

The goal of the march was to “send a message to the obscurantists who want to impose extreme thoughts and destroy the image of our country,” said the organizers of the event.

https://www.facebook.com/khalid.chafaqui/videos/vb.1848487249/10212944252361561/?type=2&video_source=user_video_tab

The event has received praise on social media, with users commending the women for doing something tangible to show solidarity with the Belgian teens.

Excellente cette intifada de la jeunesse marocaine contre le diktat des obscurantistes qui veulent faire régresser la société #yesweshort Bravo pour leur courage, pour leur créativité et pour leur esprit d’initiative

— Omar Dahbi (@OmarDahbi) August 10, 2019

The group of Belgian youth, from the organization Bouworde, came to Morocco to volunteer for the summer and was building a road in Taroudant. But the young volunteers unexpectedly found themselves in the center of media controversy this week.

On Saturday, August 3, Moroccan news outlets shared videos and photos of the volunteers building a road in the remote village of Adar, east of Agadir. The girls were praised in the media for their initiative, but online comments soon took a turn for the worse.

Some internet users were objecting to the teenage girls’ choice of attire. The girls were filmed wearing shorts and tank tops, while doing manual labor under the Moroccan sun, in the name of volunteering.

One 26-year-old teacher from the north of Morocco posted on Facebook that “their heads should be cut off so that no one else dares to challenge the teachings of our religion.” He was arrested on Tuesday, August 6, by Moroccan police for inciting terrorism.

As a result of the threats and the fear the controversy may have caused the students, Bouworde has offered the students the opportunity to return home early. Only 3 of the 37 volunteers accepted the offer to return home.