Senegal

In addition to listening to this conversation now, is it true that there was a time when the LGBTQ+ community was not persecuted in Senegal? You will be surprised to learn about a time when Dakar was once described as the gay city of Western Africa.<\/p>\n<p>Before starting our conversation, let&#039;s first introduce our guests, Youssef Belghmaidi is a Moroccan transwoman, an activist based in Aubervilliers in the northeastern suburb of Paris in France. She has organised the first pride march in the multicultural neighbourhood of Saint-Denis in Paris. She has a bachelor in transnational politics at the University Paris 8 Saint-Denis and Sheba Akpokli is a LGBTQ rights activist and a lawyer from Togo. She represents the African region on the world board of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Intersex Association. She also has experience in research and documentation in West Africa.<\/p>\n<p>Now, I have a question for both of you, we are looking at homophobia and masculinity and in the previous episodes about homophobia in Senegal, we have learned that homosexual men there are targeted with the slur G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en - a pejorative term, which literally means man or woman in the Wolof language and is used to belittle their masculinity.<\/p>\n<p>We all know this is not only the case in Senegal. For example, here in South Africa, where I am, gay men are called Moffies a South African slang word, meaning a guy who dresses and acts like a girl word.<\/p>\n<p>Moffie is the title of a 2019 film by a South African director, Oliver Hermanus, that explores the relationship between homophobia and toxic masculinity.<\/p>\n<p>Here is a question for both of you, have you had similar terms in Morocco and France, in your case, Youssef and in Togo or other West African countries in your case, Sheba?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Youssef Belghmaidi:<\/strong> So a little trigger warning for the listeners. Obviously, we&#039;re going to use a lot of derogatory slurs. Well, in Morocco, there is a similar term that is zemel, which is which doesn&#039;t really work on the duality between homosexuality and heterosexuality. But it&#039;s really more about the duality between hegemonic masculinity and masculinity that is subjected to this hegemonic masculinity. So, yeah, the word zemel doesn&#039;t really translate into like fag, but it&#039;s really used to describe a man that is dominated by superior masculinity. As for French, there is p\u00e9d\u00e9, which is pretty much a translation of fag, and it&#039;s used to point out the fact that homosexuality is inferior to heterosexuality, politically speaking.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> In your case, Sheba, what is the experience? What have you picked up?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sheba Akpokli:<\/strong> I think, yes, there are similar expressions as well in Togo, and one of them is nousugnon to describe a man who behaves like a woman or conversely, a woman who behaves like a man. So I think there&#039;s a context we are sharing both in Togo or Morocco or even in Senegal as well.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> Now, in both your experiences from both the environments that you are speaking of right now, these terms are aimed at belittling the masculinity of homosexual men. Why do you think that is the case? Why do you think society or communities do that?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sheba Akpokli:<\/strong> I think it&#039;s because of gender stereotypes. Some people expect men to have only and exclusively feelings with a woman. In addition, I think people limit very often the same-sex relationships to the sexual part when is actually more than that. And I wonder at which time the fact that a man has feelings for another one takes away his masculinity, in fact. So I think this kind of comparison is made of first of all moralising people and the repressive context where we have so idealised the qualities required to be a man that if you do not meet these criteria, you are not a real one. But I know that question that I&#039;m drawing our attention to is that what is a real man?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> In fact, what is your observation Youssef?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Youssef Belghmaidi:<\/strong> Well, I really agree with Sheba. It&#039;s really not about the sexual dimension of it. It&#039;s really a minority part of the whole system, I think, masculinity, especially in Morocco, is really linked to family, which is a really important social crux.<\/p>\n<p>So basically a man, in order to preserve the patriarchal order, has to provide for his family, has to lead his family. So this is why in Morocco, when I came out to my mom as a gay man in my earlier years, she was like, oh, it&#039;s OK. There&#039;s a lot of gay people in the closet, you can still have sex with men and still get married and stuff.<\/p>\n<p>And so there are a lot of men in Morocco who actually partake in sexual activities that could be considered homosexual. But there isn&#039;t an actual stigma because, at the end of the day, they&#039;re still going to get married to a woman, they still going to create a family. They still going to create a heterosexual social structure. So the stigma is really more about actually defying the masculinity norms with the gay identity. So it&#039;s really, really about that. It&#039;s not necessarily about sexuality.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> I hear you say that you find men in Morocco actually straddling both worlds, is that correct?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Youssef Belghmaidi:<\/strong> Pretty much some of them don&#039;t see the problem in having a secret gay life. Some of them obviously do have issues, but some of them obviously are perfectly happy, not necessarily happy, but they&#039;re content with the fact that their sexual life is going to be hidden in order to have a normal heterosexual family life.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> Right. Right. Now, when we asked people in Senegal to describe how a man should act, they all agreed on one concept, and that is a man is the opposite of a woman.<\/p>\n<p>Now, the stereotypes that you have been talking about here, Sheba and Youssef almost common in many parts of the world, certainly in many parts of Africa, what happens in Morocco and Togo to people who do not fit the patterns that society actually expects them to be living or to fit as men and women.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Youssef Belghmaidi:<\/strong> So obviously, it is punished by law, by the penal code. So in Morocco, that would be article 489.<\/p>\n<p>So it&#039;s obviously well, you can get in prison for up to three years. There&#039;s also a very expensive fine and there&#039;s also a general social stigma that leads to marginalisation and basically you get banished from society.<\/p>\n<p>This stigma really happens when you actually decide to transform your homosexuality or your queerness as an actual identity, that that can actually, like, challenge the local and national social structures.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> Sheba. In your experience, what is it that you have actually seen?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sheba Akpokli:<\/strong> In Togo, we have a law that criminalises same-sex relationships and we have sanctioned up to three years in jail. And the other thing that can go up to three million CFA. So for people who assume their sexual orientation, there is that law, even if to this day this law has never condemned anyone.<\/p>\n<p>This provision is kept there to try to discourage people because when it happens that you assume your identity and your queerness. This is the point when you can be banned from society and, you know, not more accepted anyway.<\/p>\n<p>So there is also a social stigma and there is as well an important role played by the religious groups<\/p>\n<p>For queer people Togo, this is not really easy, because, first of all, this is like most of the African country, a very hetero dominant society where we have a law and it is fairly difficult to live with your sexual orientation openly, for instance, you cannot be openly lesbian in Togo because first of all, like I was saying, we have a very patriarchal society.<\/p>\n<p>So you have to be in this picture of double discrimination for some, first of all, for being a woman and then for being as well a lesbian or LGBTI people so you can definitely leave your sexual orientation freely.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> So it&#039;s pretty much about living your life in the closet, about living your life as a secret and not actually living it off so that people can actually see your authentic self.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sheba Akpokli:<\/strong> Exactly. Because if you out yourself and you are openly queer, it&#039;s like opening the door to any kind of violence and discrimination.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> The conditions that we face in many parts of Africa. I would imagine that the draconian social stigma and the draconian laws that exist actually apply for both men who identify as LGBTQ+ and women as well who identify as LGBTQ+, or does it affect men more than women or vice versa? How does it work? What is your experience? Are lesbian women finding it a bit easier to live their identity as opposed to homosexual men or gay men?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Youssef Belghmaidi:<\/strong> Yeah, of course. I don&#039;t think lesbian women have it easier. On the contrary, I think it&#039;s mostly about visibility. Gay men are way more visible. So we talk a lot more about their issues, the violence that they face. And I mean, at least in Morocco, as I said, we really don&#039;t talk about lesbians because there are no words. So basically everything starts with masculine homosexuality and then we translate. But there are no discussions on lesbian specificities.<\/p>\n<p>So one might argue that because of invisibility, lesbian women might have it better because I don&#039;t know, they can, like, get around stuff. But that&#039;s really not the reality of it. Like lesbian women also face tremendous violence, corrective rapes. They also get in prison. They also face really, really harsh violence. So they have that and they also have fewer possibilities to talk about their identities, to conceptualise their identities, to conceptualise their situations because of the lack of words, because of the lack of representation, because of the lack of work on the matter.<\/p>\n<p>But also in France, which is considered to be like this, really LGBTQ+ friendly country. Well, we don&#039;t really talk about lesbians. There are not that many lesbian cultural places, bars, exhibits, stuff like that.<\/p>\n<p>So it&#039;s really, really an issue that should be tackled both in Morocco but also in France.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Youssef Belghmaidi:<\/strong> Sheba, do you want to jump in there?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sheba Akpokli:<\/strong> I think that we are having the same challenges. And the fact that we are talking more about the challenges faced by the gay men, it doesn&#039;t mean that it&#039;s easier for the lesbian to live in our countries. It&#039;s probably because sometimes women do not report enough those kinds of violence.<\/p>\n<p>But if you have you look at this survey, the reports that have been done recently, you can see that most of the families this has been directly directed to the LGBTQ+ women community and the transgender people as well. And we are not classifying. But, you know, it&#039;s not the fact that we are talking more about gay people&#039;s discrimination, that, on the other hand, it&#039;s easier for the other subgroup.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> Thank you. Now, as we wrap up this conversation, in the previous episodes of Cry Like a Boy, we learned the story of Junior, a young Senegalese man who is forced to live with the secret of being gay, because in Senegal, if you come out of the closet, you not only risk being persecuted and harassed, but you can end up in jail.<\/p>\n<p>What does it mean for a person to live a life inside the closet?<\/p>\n<p>Do you know stories like Junior&#039;s? What similarities and differences do you find in the challenges of being gay in Morocco and France, in your case, Youssef, and in Togo and Senegal in your case, Sheba?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sheba Akpokli:<\/strong> What does it mean for someone to live in the closet. I would say oppression. Taking a lot on yourself. Probably fragile mental health by being forced to conform. Constant insecurity. Fear of being outed and for sure always double-check before going anywhere, any place. This portrait is really sad.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> That is a whole lot of issues that you have to deal with at a personal level, because you always have to be in check of yourself, in check of what you do, in check of what you say, in check of where you go. Youssef, your understanding?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Youssef Belghmaidi:<\/strong> Well, I agree with Sheba. It&#039;s pretty much suffocating.<\/p>\n<p>I think for me, at least, that&#039;s how I feel because obviously it really reduces your life to endless performances and performances. So you don&#039;t really have the possibility to actually be authentic. You also live in this fear of having your performances being clogged. So obviously, when you get clogged, well, a lot of violence comes down on you. So it&#039;s not necessarily the same thing between Morocco and France and within France, there are also a lot of contrasts and differences between contexts.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, I live in la banlieue (suburbs in French), which is a suburban area. The northern banlieue (of Paris) is mostly inhabited by immigrants from all parts of Africa. So there are a lot of racist and colonial stigmas on us people, immigrants living in le banlieue. And so being LGBT in la banlieue isn&#039;t really the same thing as being LGBT in Paris, for instance, because, well, a lot of people in la banlieue are so closeted for many, many, many reasons.<\/p>\n<p>People like to say in France, the general opinion likes to say that it&#039;s about like Islam. It&#039;s because African countries are less developed on the LGBTQ matters. But that&#039;s actually like a very simplistic approach and it&#039;s way more complex than that.<\/p>\n<p>But instead, of going into these specificities, which might take a while, I&#039;d say, yeah, it is really suffocating. And a lot of people, a lot of non-LGBTQ people like to say that it&#039;s really about sexual activity. So you can basically have your sexual life and then you can have your normal life. But actually, it&#039;s not really about being your authentic self. It&#039;s about having your identity. At the end of the day, it&#039;s really about auto-determination. And that&#039;s obviously not a right that we have as LGBTQ people, whether it is in Togo, whether it&#039;s in Morocco, whether it is also in France.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Khopotso Bodibe:<\/strong> Thank you so much for your time. Both of you, Youssef and Sheba, thank you for joining us for this episode.<\/p>\n<p><strong>CREDITS:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This show has been produced with me, Khopotso Bodibe, Marta Moreiras in Senegal, Marta Rodr\u00edguez-Martinez, Lillo Montalto-Monella, Naira Davlashyan and Arwa Barkallah in Lyon. Special thanks go to Lory Martinez, Clizia Sala and <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////ochentastudio.com///">Studio Ochenta<\/a> for helping us produce this podcast. Theme by Gabriel Dalmasso.<\/p>\n<p>I would like to thank our guests Sheba Akpokli and Youssef Belghmaidi. For more information on Cry Like a Boy, a Euronews original series and podcast, go to <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//2020//12//23//podcast-cry-like-a-boy-all-episodes/">euronews.com to find opinion pieces, videos and articles on the topic.<\/p>\n<p>Follow us on Twitter <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////twitter.com//euronews/">@Euronews is our Twitter handle and we are <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.instagram.com//euronews.tv///">@Euronews.TV on Instagram. Also, share with us your own stories of how you changed and challenged your view on what it means to be a man using the hashtag <strong>#crylikeaboy<\/strong>. If you a French speaker, this podcast is also available in French \"Dans la t\u00eate des Hommes\" is the name of the podcast series.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <p><i><strong>This programme was funded by the European Journalism Centre, through the European Development Journalism Grants programme. This fund is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.<\/i><\/strong><br \/> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.gatesfoundation.org///">Podcast: Cry Like a Boy explores the pressures linked to 'being a man' | All episodes<\/a> <\/li><\/ul>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The men who become Nijaayu Gox are usually the most respected men in their communities. Quite often, like Makhtar, they have day jobs and, in their spare time, <strong>they go from door to door<\/strong>, talking to other men, teaching them seemingly simple things, like joining their wives in their medical appointments.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMen who accompany their wives to health posts are frowned upon because <strong>people tend to think that they are weak<\/strong>\u201d, explains Makhtar, adding that mentality isn\u2019t the only problem that the men face.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEven at work, if you are absent to accompany your wife, you are punished. So it is important that the men also put themselves <strong>in the shoes of the Bajenu Gox<\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Makhtar&#039;s activism doesn&#039;t just aim to change these harmful traditions.<\/p>\n<p>With a population of 16 million people, Senegal has one of the <strong>highest maternal mortality rates<\/strong> in the world. According to the World Bank data from 2017, each year <strong>315 women in every 100,000<\/strong> die during childbirth in this West African country. In Italy, where the maternal mortality rate is one of the world\u2019s lowest, <strong>the average is two.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>According to science, getting men involved in pregnancies not only improves their parenting skills but can reduce maternal mortality. A 2016 study in a community of Northwest Ethiopia showed that <strong>fathers who are<\/strong> <strong>better-informed about obstetric danger signs<\/strong> can prevent these deaths.<\/p>\n<p>The Nijaayu Gox want to extend their network all across the country. They are working with local governments, imams and NGOs to educate their peers. Makhtar feels there is still a lot of work to do, but things are starting to change. At least for the men in the programme.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<strong>Now, we are able to understand how women feel in these situations.<\/strong> We are able to understand what they are going through\u201d, he says.<\/p>\n<p>According to him, the slow shift in the mentality brings families together. \u201cWe used to give someone money to take care of our wives&#039; prescriptions for these appointments so we didn\u2019t have to do it\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are also able <strong>to understand that it helps a woman<\/strong> if she gives birth to a child in good conditions\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2>About Cry Like a Boy<\/h2><p>Cry Like a Boy is a Euronews original series and podcast in which we are travelling to five different African countries meeting men defying centuries-old stereotypes.<\/p>\n<p>For each country, we bring you two narrative episodes - a full reportage on the ground, done in collaboration with local journalists, split into two parts - and two roundtables, bringing together the African and the European perspectives.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <iframe title=\"Embed Player\" width=\"100%\" height=\"188px\" src=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////embed.acast.com//euronews-cry-like-a-boy//thegoor-jigeeninsenegal-thesecret?accentColor=000000&bgColor=f4dd57&font-family=Anton&secondaryColor=000000\%22 scrolling=\"no\" frameBorder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe> \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <iframe title=\"Embed Player\" width=\"100%\" height=\"188px\" src=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////embed.acast.com//euronews-cry-like-a-boy//thegoor-jigeeninsenegal-thepast?accentColor=000000&bgColor=f4dd57&font-family=Anton&logo=false&secondaryColor=000000\%22 scrolling=\"no\" frameBorder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe> \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Cry Like a Boy is published every two weeks. If you haven\u2019t listened to our previous episodes about the Abatangamuco, <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//2020//10//29//cry-like-a-boy-in-burundi-when-an-abusive-husband-decides-to-ask-for-forgiveness/">a group of former violent husbands from Burundi who decided to change and inspired a whole country<\/a>, please, do so in the player below.<\/p>\n<p>If you want to stay tuned, <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//2020//12//23//podcast-cry-like-a-boy-all-episodes/">subscribe to Cry Like a Boy<\/a> on your podcast app.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <a href=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////podcasts.apple.com//podcast//cry-like-a-boy//id1535606269' target='_blank'><img style='max-width:200px;padding-top:1rem;' src=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////static.euronews.com//website//images//special//lockup_download_large.png' width='30%' \/><\/a> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////castbox.fm//app//castbox//player//id3437436' target='_blank'><img style='max-width:200px;padding-top:1rem;' src=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////static.euronews.com//website//images//special//Castbox_Badge_Small_Light@2x.png' width='30%' \/> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////open.spotify.com//show//2AcEbQXgiyrlDZQ9hlwEtq?si=cEHRJ6WcQIu7V2uECfyZXA' target='_blank'><img style='max-width:200px;' src=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////static.euronews.com//website//images//special//spotify-podcast-badge-wht-grn-660x160.png' width='30%' \/><\/a> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////deezer.page.link//vdiXk1zA4PYbDRz3A' target='_blank'><img style='max-width:200px;padding-top:1rem;' src=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////static.euronews.com//website//images//special//Colored_Full_Black@2x.png' width='30%' \/><\/a> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////podcasts.google.com//feed//aHR0cHM6Ly9yc3MuYWNhc3QuY29tL2V1cm9uZXdzLWNyeS1saWtlLWEtYm95' target='_blank'><img style='max-width:200px;padding-top:1rem;' src=https://www.euronews.com/news/africa/'https:////static.euronews.com//website//images//special//Google_podcast_EN.png' width='30%' \/><\/a> \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <p><i><strong>This programme was funded by the European Journalism Centre, through the European Development Journalism Grants programme. This fund is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.<\/i><\/strong><br \/> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.gatesfoundation.org///">/u2018G/u00f3or-jig/u00e9en/u2019 has become a pejorative term<\/a> targeting gay men.<\/p>\n<p>Do any Senegalese still remember the time when this didn\u2019t happen? Why did things change?<\/p>\n<p>In this episode, we investigate the colonial roots of homophobia in Senegal. To do this, we travel back in time to when Dakar was known as the \u201cgay capital\u201d of West Africa.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <iframe title=\"Embed Player\" width=\"100%\" height=\"188px\" src=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////embed.acast.com//euronews-cry-like-a-boy//thegoor-jigeeninsenegal-thepast?accentColor=000000&bgColor=f4dd57&font-family=Anton&logo=false&secondaryColor=000000\%22 scrolling=\"no\" frameBorder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe> \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Original reporting and editing by Marta Moreiras in Dakar, Senegal; Naira Davlashyan, Marta Rodr\u00edguez Mart\u00ednez and Lillo Montalto Monella in Lyon, and Lory Martinez in Paris, France; Clizia Sala in London, United Kingdom. Production Design by Studio Ochenta. Music by Sahad Sarr. Theme music by Gabriel Dalmasso. Music curation for this episode is by Natalia Oelsner. Graphic Design by Alexis Caddeo &amp; Alois Bombardier.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//2020//12//23//podcast-cry-like-a-boy-all-episodes/">Cry Like a Boy podcast<\/a> is hosted in English by Danielle Olavario, and in French by Arwa Barkallah. Our editor in chief is Yasir Khan.<\/p>\n<p>The film you hear at the beginning of this episode is Lamb: La Lutte Senegalaise by Senegalese\/Beninese film director and historian Paulin Soumanou Vieyra. You can check more information about his work and buy the film in <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"http:////www.psv-films.fr///">www.psv-films.fr./n

In this episode, we used music by Sahad Sarr, a Senegalese artist, and songwriter, involved in the development of rural populations. You can check out his work at sahadpatchwork.com. Additional music recordings by Bruce Miller.<\/p>\n<p>Editorial and production assistance from: Ignatius Annor, Tokunbo Salako, Paul Hackett, Matthew Holroyd, Nial O&#039;Reilly and Sylvain Dutang.<\/p>\n<div\n data-stories-id=\"5222150,5089276\"\n data-event=\"widget_related\"\n class=\"widget widget--type-related widget--size-fullwidth widget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <ul class=\"widget__related_list\"><li class=\"widget__related_listItem\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//culture//2020//11//05//what-can-men-learn-from-the-abatangamuco-a-group-of-former-violent-husbands-in-burundi/">Podcast | What can men learn from the Abatangamuco, a group of former violent husbands in Burundi<\/a> <\/li><li class=\"widget__related_listItem\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//culture//2020//12//23//podcast-cry-like-a-boy-all-episodes/">Podcast: Cry Like a Boy explores the pressures linked to 'being a man' | All episodes<\/a> <\/li><\/ul>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>In the next episode, we will have a conversation about coming out of the closet in conservative societies. We will also talk about gender roles and homophobia with two LGTBIQ rights activists: Youssef Belghmaidi, a Moroccan trans woman activist based in France, and Sheba Akpokli, an LGTBIQ+ rights activist, and a lawyer, from Togo.<\/p>\n<p>Make sure you listen to our next episode, which will be published on Thursday, January 21st.<\/p>\n<p>If you speak French, listen to the French version of our podcast. It is called Dans la T\u00eate des Hommes. In the next episodes in French, we will talk to two Senegalese living in Europe: lesbian activist Marame Kane, and writer Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, author of De Purs Hommes (Pure men).<\/p>\n<p>If you haven\u2019t had a chance to listen to the previous episode, please <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//2020//12//17//podcast-a-life-in-the-shadows-what-it-s-like-to-be-a-gay-man-in-dakar/">give it a try<\/a>. In it, we told the story of Junior, a young Senegalese man, who lives with a secret that he has kept from his family and his closest friends, for fear of not only rejection but persecution and even imprisonment. The secret is that Junior (not his real name) is gay.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <iframe title=\"Embed Player\" width=\"100%\" height=\"188px\" src=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////embed.acast.com//euronews-cry-like-a-boy//thegoor-jigeeninsenegal-thesecret?accentColor=000000&bgColor=f4dd57&font-family=Anton&secondaryColor=000000\%22 scrolling=\"no\" frameBorder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe> \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Cry Like a Boy is an original Euronews series and podcast that explores how the pressure to be \u2018a man\u2019 can harm families and entire societies. Stay with us as we travel across the African continent to meet men who are defying centuries-old gender stereotypes, and redefining their roles as men.<\/p>\n<h2>TRANSCRIPT | THE G\u00d3OR-JIG\u00c9EN IN SENEGAL: THE PAST - EPISODE 6<\/h2><p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> We are at a Senegalese wrestling fight on a beach in Dakar. The men bend as they struggle to fight.<\/p>\n<p>Hands forward, legs back. They start by slapping each other\u2019s hands. Necks snap together. With their fists they try to hit the chest.<\/p>\n<p>The belly. The chin. Blindly. Because they have their heads stuck together. It&#039;s combat, but it&#039;s also a kind of choreography.<\/p>\n<p>This is what masculinity looks like in Senegal.<\/p>\n<p>Senegalese wrestling has become popular since 1914. Sociologist Djibril Seck argues that it was a tool for recovering native African masculinity, wounded by colonisation. During colonial times, popular European representations of African men were feminised and infantilised.<\/p>\n<p>But in the arena, the African warrior was back. Strong, muscular, narcissistic, and stoic in the face of pain. And of course, free of any feminine attributes.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s how Senegalese men are portrayed in the 1963 movie by Paulin Soumanou Vieyra \u2018Lamb, la lutte senegalaise\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>Welcome to Cry Like a Boy. I am Danielle Olavario and this is the second part of our documentary on the g\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en in Senegal. If you haven\u2019t yet heard part 1, take a listen on euronews.com\/special\/cry-like-boy-podcasts<\/p>\n<p>In our previous episode, we met Junior, a 24-year-old Senegalese who lives with a secret. A taboo in Senegalese society.<\/p>\n<p>As a young gay man, he lives in fear of being called G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en, a \"man-woman\u201d; as they are pejoratively called in the local Wolof language. But it wasn\u2019t always that way.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Junior:<\/strong> \u201cG\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en before meant something different, because they were men who dressed like women and talked like women according to the research I&#039;ve done.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> So how was the situation before? What changed?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Michael Davidson:<\/strong> \u201cIn 1949, Dakar was already the \u201cgay\u201d city of West Africa. When I returned nine years later, the French rulers had gone, and Dakar was gayer than ever\u2026 For some reason, buried in history and ethnography, the Senegalese [\u2026] have a reputation in all those regions for homosexuality, and in Dakar, one can quickly see that they merit this reputation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> This is an excerpt from the travel essay by English journalist Michael Davidson. He published it in 1970, but it reflects his experiences in his visit to the West African country between 1949 and 1958.<\/p>\n<p>Senegal became fully independent on August 20th, 1960, after centuries under the French colonial rule. So when Davidson was traveling, the country was still a colony.<\/p>\n<p>He wasn\u2019t the only one to observe that the streets of Senegal were particularly welcoming to gender diversity.<\/p>\n<p>Senegalese professor of Pan African Studies Babacar Mbaye from Kent University explains:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Babacar Mbaye:<\/strong> \u201cWhen I grew up, I mean, in the 70s, I was just a kid, couldn&#039;t do anything. But in the 80s, suddenly, as I was, you know, a teenager, you know, I could see individuals, you see, you know, similar to those that are being described today as a g\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en, you see. You know, I could remember, you know, I could remember and I didn&#039;t remember any violence perpetrated against those individuals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> Let\u2019s now go deeper. Let\u2019s look a little further back through the words of another English anthropologist Geoffrey Gorer who wrote this in 1935.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Geoffrey Gorer:<\/strong> \u201cThey are called in Wolof men-women, G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en, and do their best to deserve the epithet by their mannerisms, their dress, and their make-up; some even dress their hair like women. They do not suffer in any way socially... on the contrary, they are sought after as the best conversationalists and the best dancers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> In his time, the G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en, men-women, were integrated in the Senegalese society.<\/p>\n<p>Senegalese culture didn\u2019t just tolerate them but accepted them as an important part of the community. They had a prominent role in life&#039;s ceremonies, such as weddings and baptisms. They also often accompanied high society women and had an influential political position.<\/p>\n<p>That memory is still there somewhere. Not only in studies, diaries, and books. Some Senegalese people like Professor Mbaye still remember it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Babacar Mbaye:<\/strong> \u201cWhen they were dancing, everybody was just crossing their arms. And that&#039;s in all watching. You see what nobody was turning their eyes away. You see, you know, and when those individuals walked by, you, you know, as a boy, I dare not, I did not, do anything to insult them. I did not laugh at them because we considered them our fathers, you see. We considered them like our fathers, that we gave them the same sense of respect that we gave to our fathers and our uncles.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> Like the G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en in Senegal, we can find examples of people who don\u2019t identify with the category of woman or man throughout Europe.<\/p>\n<p>Historical examples of such figures include il femminiello who, just like the G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9ens, played an important role in ceremonies such as weddings in the 19th century in Naples, Italy.<\/p>\n<p>And some still very current, such as the \u201csworn virgins\u201d from Albania. Born women but who decide to live like men. They are accepted only if they take a vow of chastity for life. Some do so to live more freely or to be able to provide for their families.<\/p>\n<p>So what we\u2019re seeing in Senegal is a transformation of the term \u2018G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en\u2019 from meaning gender fluid, or a third neutral gender, to meaning a pejorative term, strictly for gay men.<\/p>\n<p>Today this nuance is lost, as French researcher Christophe Broqua from the French National Centre for Scientific Research explains here:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Christophe Broqua:<\/strong> \u201cThey were considered to be men with feminine attributes. But the expression said nothing about their sexuality.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> What\u2019s more, Cheikh Niang, a Senegalese Professor of medical and social anthropology at Cheikh-Anta-Diop university, says that the creation of these kinds of taboos is rooted in colonial influence:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cheikh Niang:<\/strong> \u201cThey took it from the colonial laws. And in the colonial laws, you have all these homophobic dispositions. The laws that you find in the texts and in Africa were not invented by Africans. It came as a result of the introduction of these same laws. We just copied and pasted. We extended laws that existed during colonisation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> Colonisation has represented a step back in respecting gender diversity and identity. And, in time, it created a void in the historic memory of the Senegalese.<\/p>\n<p>Fast forward almost a century, we are back in 2020. Back in the streets of Dakar at rush hour. People here cannot freely experience their sexuality.<\/p>\n<p>Everyone who is sexually diverse tends to hide it, because they\u2019re afraid of punishment. The slightest hint of a female attribute in a man is seen as outrageous.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Christophe Broqua:<\/strong> \u201cThere is a well-known Senegalese artist, Waly Seck, who was wearing a handbag in a clip and in photos. That was considered too feminine and he was extremely stigmatised for it. He even had to destroy it publicly at a concert to end the controversy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Friends, The One With Joey&#039;s Bag (1999):<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Joey:<\/strong> You think I should give up the bag.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Rachel:<\/strong> Wait Joey I\u2019m sorry. As terrific as I think you are with it\u2026<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ross:<\/strong> Oh hey\u2026<\/p>\n<p><strong>Rachel:<\/strong> I just don\u2019t know if the world is ready for you and your bag.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> In societies around the world, in many languages, there are words to demean those who do not fit into traditional male or female patterns.<\/p>\n<p>Femminuccia. Maschiaccio.<\/p>\n<p>Nenaza. Marimacho.<\/p>\n<p>\u0442\u044e\u0444\u044f\u043a. \u0411\u043e\u0439-\u0431\u0430\u0431\u0430.<\/p>\n<p>Sissy. Tomboy.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> In Senegal, the word is G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en. A word Junior has probably heard many times. But deep down, this word cannot hurt him.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Junior:<\/strong> \u201cYes, being gay and masculine is possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danielle Olavario:<\/strong> He knows his sexuality doesn\u2019t affect his masculinity. Neither does the tone of his voice, his way of dressing, or his hairstyle. He says he is a proud man.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Junior:<\/strong> \u201cI have always lived my masculinity naturally because I played with my friends. I did everything that everyone else did was no different. Do you sometimes wonder when you tend to listen to the radio or TV, or even hear people talking? You can ask yourself questions, but it&#039;s only for a few minutes. After that, it passes. You move on because it&#039;s your life and you are the only one concerned.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>CREDITS:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In this episode, we used music by Sahad Sarr, a Senegalese artist, and songwriter, involved in the development of rural populations. You can check out his work at sahadpatchwork.com.<\/p>\n<p>With original reporting and editing by Marta Moreiras in Dakar, Senegal, Marta Rodriguez Martinez, Naira Davlashyan, Lillo Montalto Monella &amp; Arwa Barkallah in Lyon, Lory Martinez in Paris, France and Clizia Sala in London, UK.<\/p>\n<p>Production Design by <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////ochentastudio.com///">Studio Ochenta<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Theme by Gabriel Dalmasso.<\/p>\n<p>Special thanks to our producer Natalia Oelsner for collecting the music for this episode. Our editor in chief is <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.linkedin.com//in//ykhan//?originalSubdomain=fr\%22>Yasir Khan<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The film you hear in the beginning of this episode is Lamb: La Lutte Senegalaise by Senegalese\/Beninese film director and historian Paulin Soumanou Vieyra. You can check more information about his work and buy the film in <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"http:////www.psv-films.fr/">www.psv-films.fr./n

For more information on Cry Like a Boy, a Euronews original series and podcast, go to <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//programs//cry-like-boy/">euronews.com//programs//cry-like-boy to find opinion pieces, videos and articles on the topic. Follow us <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////twitter.com//euronews/">@euronews on Twitter and <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.instagram.com//euronews.tv//?hl=es\%22>euronews.tv<\/a> on Instagram.<\/p>\n<p>Share with us your own stories of how you changed and challenged your view on what it means to be a man. Use <strong>#CryLikeaBoy<\/strong>. If you\u2019re a French speaker, this podcast is also available in French: <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////fr.euronews.com//2021//01//04//podcast-dans-la-tete-des-hommes-tous-nos-episodes/">Dans la T\u00eate des Hommes.<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <p><i><strong>This programme was funded by the European Journalism Centre, through the European Development Journalism Grants programme. This fund is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.<\/i><\/strong><br \/> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.gatesfoundation.org///">Dakar-based journalist Marta Moreiras<\/a> explores what it means to be gay in Senegal, where homosexual men here are targeted with the slur \u201cG\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en\u201d - a pejorative term which literally means \u201cmen-women\u201d in the Wolof language, and is used to belittle their masculinity.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <iframe title=\"Embed Player\" width=\"100%\" height=\"188px\" src=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////embed.acast.com//euronews-cry-like-a-boy//thegoor-jigeeninsenegal-thesecret?accentColor=000000&bgColor=f4dd57&font-family=Anton&secondaryColor=000000\%22 scrolling=\"no\" frameBorder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe> \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Is it true that the G\u00f3or-jig\u00e9en were once widely accepted and respected? Are there Senegalese who still remember this? In the next episode, we will investigate the origin of homophobia in Senegal. <strong>Make sure you listen to our next episode, which will be published on Thursday, January 7th.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//programs//cry-like-boy/">Cry Like a Boy<\/a> is an original Euronews series and podcast that explores how <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//2020//09//24//pandemic-creates-historic-moment-to-end-macho-culture/">the pressure to be \u2018a man\u2019<\/a> can harm families and entire societies. Stay with us as we travel across the African continent to meet men who are defying centuries-old gender stereotypes, and redefining their roles as men.<\/p>\n<div\n data-stories-id=\"5089276\"\n data-event=\"widget_related\"\n class=\"widget widget--type-related widget--size-fullwidth widget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <ul class=\"widget__related_list\"><li class=\"widget__related_listItem\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//culture//2020//11//05//what-can-men-learn-from-the-abatangamuco-a-group-of-former-violent-husbands-in-burundi/">Podcast | What can men learn from the Abatangamuco, a group of former violent husbands in Burundi<\/a> <\/li><\/ul>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Original reporting and editing by Marta Moreiras in Dakar, Senegal; Naira Davlashyan, Marta Rodr\u00edguez Mart\u00ednez and Lillo Montalto Monella in Lyon, and Lory Martinez in Paris, France; Clizia Sala in London, United Kingdom. Production Design by Studio Ochenta. Theme music by Gabriel Dalmasso. Music curation for this episode is by Natalia Oelsner. Graphic Design by Alexis Caddeo &amp; Alois Bombardier.<\/p>\n<p>Music: Sahad Sarr is the author of the compositions, <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////sahadpatchwork.com///">Sahad and the Nataal Patchwork<\/a> the performer and Patchworld Production the producer.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//2020//09//24//cry-like-a-boy-because-being-tough-all-the-time-hurts/">Cry Like a Boy<\/a> podcast is hosted in English by Danielle Olavario, and in French by Arwa Barkallah. Our editor in chief is Yasir Khan.<\/p>\n<p>Editorial and production assistance from Ignatius Annor, Nial O&#039;Reilly, Matthew Holroyd and Sylvain Dutang.<\/p>\n<div\n data-stories-id=\"5062082,5018370\"\n data-event=\"widget_related\"\n class=\"widget widget--type-related widget--size-fullwidth widget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <ul class=\"widget__related_list\"><li class=\"widget__related_listItem\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//culture//2020//10//15//from-angola-to-lisbon-my-life-with-toxic-masculinity/">From Angola to Lisbon: My life with toxic masculinity | View<\/a> <\/li><li class=\"widget__related_listItem\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//culture//2020//10//02//cry-like-a-boy-what-is-toxic-masculinity/">Cry Like a Boy: What is toxic masculinity?<\/a> <\/li><\/ul>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>You can listen to our previous episodes <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//special//cry-like-boy-podcasts/">here:/n

sahadpatchwork.com./n

With original reporting and editing by Marta Moreiras in Dakar, Senegal, Marta Rodriguez Martinez, Naira Davlashyan, Lillo Montalto Monella &amp; Arwa Barkallah in Lyon, Lory Martinez in Paris, France and Clitzia Sala in London, UK.<\/p>\n<p>Production Design by <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////ochentastudio.com///">Studio Ochenta<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Theme by Gabriel Dalmasso.<\/p>\n<p>Special thanks to our producer Natalia Oelsner for collecting the music for this episode. Our editor in chief is Yasir Khan.<\/p>\n<p>For more information on Cry Like a Boy, a Euronews original series and podcast, go to <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//programs//cry-like-boy/">euronews.com//programs//cry-like-boy to find opinion pieces, videos, and articles on the topic. Follow us <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////twitter.com//euronews/">@euronews on Twitter and <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.instagram.com//euronews.tv//?hl=es\%22>euronews.tv<\/a> on Instagram.<\/p>\n<p>Share with us your own stories of how you changed and challenged your view on what it means to be a man. Use <strong>#CryLikeaBoy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re a French speaker, this podcast is also available in French: <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////fr.euronews.com//programmes//dans-la-tete-des-hommes/">Dans la T\u00eate des Hommes.<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <p><i><strong>This programme was funded by the European Journalism Centre, through the European Development Journalism Grants programme. This fund is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.<\/i><\/strong><br \/> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.gatesfoundation.org///">Let&#039;s build my school<\/strong><\/a>, a charity that constructs education facilities in remote African villages.<\/p>\n<p>Leila has lived all over the world. Her parents are from Senegal but she was born in France and completed her studies in the UK where she now works as an architect.<\/p>\n<p>She believes that education is the key to growth and development which means that everybody should have access to it.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-freeform\nwidget--size-fullwidth\nwidget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CA_LhJxpIvc\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"13\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.instagram.com//p//CA_LhJxpIvc//?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\%22 style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\"> A bejegyz\u00e9s megtekint\u00e9se az Instagramon<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><p style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;\"><a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.instagram.com//p//CA_LhJxpIvc//?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\%22 style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;\" target=\"_blank\">Let's build my school (@letsbuildmyschool) \u00e1ltal megosztott bejegyz\u00e9s<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote> <script async src=https://www.euronews.com/"////www.instagram.com//embed.js/"> \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Let&#039;s build my school&#039;s first project started in 2017. It was a facility for toddlers completed with the help of the local community and volunteers from Europe. The building was created using locally sourced materials including recycled tyres.<\/p>\n<p>Building a school takes months so several different &#039;troops&#039; of volunteers have the chance to get involved. \"I think so many people are always behind their computer, trying to do donations, but being on-site and sharing a real human experience is a different approach,\" Leila tells Euronews Living.<\/p>\n<div\n data-stories-id=\"4647638,4964490\"\n data-event=\"widget_related\"\n class=\"widget widget--type-related widget--size-fullwidth widget--align-center\">\n <div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n <div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n <div class=\"widget__contents\">\n <ul class=\"widget__related_list\"><li class=\"widget__related_listItem\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//green//2020//04//26//take-the-challenge-of-the-london-marathon-without-having-to-leave-home/">Take the London Marathon '2.6 challenge' without having to leave home<\/a> <\/li><li class=\"widget__related_listItem\"> <a href=https://www.euronews.com/"https:////www.euronews.com//green//2020//09//13//meet-the-record-breaking-women-swimming-the-channel-for-cleaner-oceans/">Meet the record-breaking women swimming the Channel for cleaner oceans<\/a> <\/li><\/ul>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The pandemic has put a stop to these trips for time being but Leila is still working on the next project in Marsassoum, Senegal which is to be completed by the end of 2021.<\/p>\n<p>\"We thought it was very important to give back to this country, everything it gave to us,\" she adds. There are regions in Senegal where only 50 per cent of children have access to education.<\/p>\n<p>While volunteers are unable to travel, the charity has organised an international competition calling for proposals to design the elementary school.<\/p>\n<p>Supporting education doesn&#039;t end with building schools. The charity also teaches local people special construction techniques so they can build their own houses using upcycled materials.<\/p>\n<p>\"It is about empowering communities to be able to expand the village and be independent, to have the dignity of building a roof over their head if they need to,\" concludes Leila.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Click on the video above to learn more about the charity&#039;s work.<\/strong><\/p>\n","hashtag":null,"createdAt":1606478963,"publishedAt":1606630220,"updatedAt":1606630229,"expiresAt":0,"canonical":"https:\/\/www.euronews.com\/green\/2020\/11\/29\/this-architect-builds-schools-in-senegal-using-upcycled-materials","programDeliverable":{"slug":"sujet","format":"default"},"images":[{"url":"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/05\/15\/64\/82\/{{w}}x{{h}}_cmsv2_b720b183-c2d4-5e31-8cef-d55376d4096d-5156482.jpg","altText":"Leila Meroue Co-Founder of UK charity 'Let's build my school' with locals in Senegal.","caption":"Leila Meroue Co-Founder of UK charity 'Let's build my school' with locals in Senegal.","captionUrl":null,"captionCredit":"Let's build my school","sourceUrl":null,"sourceCredit":null,"callToActionUrl":null,"callToActionText":null,"width":1600,"height":1200}],"authors":{"journalists":[{"urlSafeValue":"katanich","title":"Doloresz Katanich","twitter":"@doloreskatanich"}],"producers":[],"videoEditor":[]},"keywords":[{"id":20658,"slug":"upcycling","urlSafeValue":"upcycling","title":"upcycling","titleRaw":"upcycling"},{"id":4144,"slug":"architecture","urlSafeValue":"architecture","title":"Architecture","titleRaw":"Architecture"},{"id":387,"slug":"education","urlSafeValue":"education","title":"Education","titleRaw":"Education"},{"id":232,"slug":"poverty","urlSafeValue":"poverty","title":"Poverty","titleRaw":"Poverty"},{"id":13070,"slug":"charity","urlSafeValue":"charity","title":"charity","titleRaw":"charity"},{"id":9387,"slug":"protection-of-children","urlSafeValue":"protection-of-children","title":"Protection of children","titleRaw":"Protection of children"}],"related":[],"technicalTags":[],"widgets":[{"slug":"html","count":1},{"slug":"related","count":1}],"allViews":0,"allViewsMeta":{"pointOfView":{"quotation":null,"description":null,"author":null},"survey":[],"tweetId":0,"tweet2NdId":null,"contentType":null,"displayOverlay":0},"displayType":"default","video":1,"videos":[{"format":"mp4","quality":"md","type":"normal","url":"https:\/\/video.euronews.com\/mp4\/med\/EN\/SV\/SU\/20\/11\/27\/en\/201127_SVSU_14033122_14033127_119400_141009_en.mp4","editor":"","duration":"119400","filesizeBytes":11332252,"expiresAt":0}],"externalPartners":[],"liveStream":[],"scribbleLiveId":0,"scribbleLiveRibbon":0,"isLiveCoverage":0,"sourceId":1,"sources":[],"externalSource":null,"additionalSources":null,"additionalReporting":null,"freeField1":null,"freeField2":"","type":"","program":{"id":"green-news","urlSafeValue":"green-news","title":"Green News","online":0,"url":"\/\/www.euronews.com\/green\/green-news\/green-news"},"vertical":"green","verticals":[{"id":8,"slug":"green","urlSafeValue":"green","title":"Green"}],"primaryVertical":{"id":8,"slug":"green","urlSafeValue":"green","title":"Green"},"themes":[{"id":"green-news","urlSafeValue":"green-news","title":"Green News","url":"\/\/www.euronews.com\/green\/green-news"}],"primaryTheme":{"id":35,"urlSafeValue":"green-news","title":"Green-news"},"advertising":0,"advertisingData":{"startDate":0,"endDate":0,"type":null,"isDfp":0,"slug":null,"title":null,"disclaimerLabelKey":null,"sponsor":null,"sponsorName":null,"sponsorUrl":null,"sponsorLogo":"","sponsorLogoReverse":""},"geoLocation":{"lat":0,"lon":0},"location":1,"continent":{"id":3,"urlSafeValue":"africa","title":"Africa"},"country":{"id":245,"urlSafeValue":"senegal","title":"Senegal","url":"\/news\/africa\/senegal"},"town":[],"versions":[],"path":"\/green\/2020\/11\/29\/this-architect-builds-schools-in-senegal-using-upcycled-materials","lastModified":1606630229}]" data-api-url="/api/country/senegal">

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