Continuing on with my observations and reflections on gender roles and public and private spheres in Moroccan society, I wanted to bring to your attention an interesting article about a movement in Saudi Arabia aimed at replacing male attendants or merchants of women's lingerie with female attendants. Once again, it was another bit of news that helped me to take note of my surroundings and to try to understand why Morocco would put men instead of women as vendors of women's undergarments.
The BBC article titled "Saudi lingerie trade in a twist" goes on to say that a lot of women feel uncomfortable providing information on sizes and preferences to male strangers. You may wonder why a guy couldn't just estimate from looking, but even that would be difficult because in Saudi Arabia they are dressed in black from head to toe. In Morocco, you have a full spectrum of western wear to the more traditional djellabas worn by both young and old, but more so by older generations. The djellabas do have a lot more spice in terms of colors, fabrics(even leopard and tiger prints), and other accents like hand-knotted buttons and embroidery, but they also do not reveal much in terms of waist size. The article adds that even men are just as uncomfortable asking questions of their female patrons who may find their comments to be inappropriate and could potentially get them in trouble.
Remembering back to my days working at various retail stores, I can't imagine being asked to manage the women's lingerie section; not that I wouldn't have minded helping the ladies, but I just know that I would not be able to provide the customer service that they would have needed. I can speak about men's underwear all day, but about women's I only have information from mass media like the Victoria's Secret fashion shows that I watch occasionally to monitor market trends and other commentary from some voluptuous ladies that complain that the current glorified anorexic look in much of the western world is making it harder and harder for them to find undergarments that fit. I can only imagine how weird it must be for my fellow Moroccans who manage the women's undergarments and the women's clothing shops. It's true that it is often hard to find a candid salesperson, but would the men ever tell a woman that that dress does make her look fat? I don't think most men conservative or liberal would, but women may and it is this honesty and personal experience that would likely keep customers coming back. From a profit standpoint, I am glad that I was put in charge of managing the gangsta rapper wear instead; despite having no real affinity to the style, but it's certainly a better match.
Venezuela is pretty open about panties and underwear. Females are for the most part the attendants of women's undergarments and clothing at your typical department store, but I always enjoyed the male street vendors(buhoneros) who would have no qualms about the merchandise they were selling and would yell from the bottom of their lungs, "PANTALETAS, PANTALETAS, PANTALETAS DE EEUU!!!"(PANTIES, PANTIES, PANTIES FROM THE USA!!!). And if they didn't get your attention then, they would put them in front of your face and yell in your ear that they were on sale. I'm sure there may be a number of male street vendors in Moroccan souks (markets) who have no reservations about what they're selling and are yelling "SLIP, SLIP, SLIP MN FRANSA!!!"(PANTIES, PANTIES, PANTIES FROM FRANCE), but I have yet to hear any and I would be surprised to hear one since sometimes Moroccans add a "Hashak"(I beg your pardon) when they talk about their slip(underwear).
Given the uneasiness on both sides, it makes perfect sense to replace the male attendants with female ones. The movement and its organizer, Reem Asaad, acknowledge that doing so would put a large quantity of men out of work, and as such the government will be reluctant to make any drastic changes. Ms. Asaad is also going up against a very conservative society that believes that the women's place is in the home. Morocco is no Saudi Arabia, but they do have a number of things in common. If Morocco was to put in a ban on men staffing lingerie or women's clothing shops, they would also be putting a lot of men out of work--I do want to note that many women in Morocco do staff your more upscale boutiques and stores in your major cities, but in the medina[old city] and rural areas most of the vendors are men. Women in Morocco can work, drive, vote, and enjoy many of the same rights that women in the western world have, but there are societal expectations for women that have a religious or cultural basis that expect women to be solely, as my host father explained to me once, the ministers of interior.
I encourage you to read the full article because like Annika Sorenstans's debut in the PGA, the movement is bringing to light an issue that has been widely accepted or perhaps adhered to, but now that it is under a spotlight and because of the attention it is receiving, the powers that be are reconsidering the situation. Ms. Asaad is putting pressure not on government, but on the retailers themselves by organizing boycotts of male-staffed stores. She is also putting together lingerie training workshops for ladies, and she is spreading the word about her movement through social networking sites like Facebook, which I believe has a fan page where you can keep up with new developments.
I do like her approach in terms of confronting the issue at a consumer level. I hope that the owners of the lingerie shops start taking notice and begin employing some women. I do not say this as an American or as a desensitized Venezuelan, but as a man who acknowledges his limited knowledge of women's undergarments and stands in solidarity with women who I believe can best equip a lady with the garments she needs to feel comfortable and look fabulous.
A correction of sorts: 06 Nov 2010 - When I wrote this blog, I wrote that I had yet to hear a Moroccan street vendor advertise that he was selling women's underwear. Well, the other day as I was walking through Khenifra's souq, I heard a young kid probably about 15 years old yelling in auctioneer mode "SLIP, SLIP, SLIP, miyatayn ryal (10DH)". I was happy to hear it. I only wished I had been walking with a female so that I could then observe how he would go about promoting the quality of his product. Oh well, next time, inshallah.
Remembering back to my days working at various retail stores, I can't imagine being asked to manage the women's lingerie section; not that I wouldn't have minded helping the ladies, but I just know that I would not be able to provide the customer service that they would have needed. I can speak about men's underwear all day, but about women's I only have information from mass media like the Victoria's Secret fashion shows that I watch occasionally to monitor market trends and other commentary from some voluptuous ladies that complain that the current glorified anorexic look in much of the western world is making it harder and harder for them to find undergarments that fit. I can only imagine how weird it must be for my fellow Moroccans who manage the women's undergarments and the women's clothing shops. It's true that it is often hard to find a candid salesperson, but would the men ever tell a woman that that dress does make her look fat? I don't think most men conservative or liberal would, but women may and it is this honesty and personal experience that would likely keep customers coming back. From a profit standpoint, I am glad that I was put in charge of managing the gangsta rapper wear instead; despite having no real affinity to the style, but it's certainly a better match.
Venezuela is pretty open about panties and underwear. Females are for the most part the attendants of women's undergarments and clothing at your typical department store, but I always enjoyed the male street vendors(buhoneros) who would have no qualms about the merchandise they were selling and would yell from the bottom of their lungs, "PANTALETAS, PANTALETAS, PANTALETAS DE EEUU!!!"(PANTIES, PANTIES, PANTIES FROM THE USA!!!). And if they didn't get your attention then, they would put them in front of your face and yell in your ear that they were on sale. I'm sure there may be a number of male street vendors in Moroccan souks (markets) who have no reservations about what they're selling and are yelling "SLIP, SLIP, SLIP MN FRANSA!!!"(PANTIES, PANTIES, PANTIES FROM FRANCE), but I have yet to hear any and I would be surprised to hear one since sometimes Moroccans add a "Hashak"(I beg your pardon) when they talk about their slip(underwear).
I encourage you to read the full article because like Annika Sorenstans's debut in the PGA, the movement is bringing to light an issue that has been widely accepted or perhaps adhered to, but now that it is under a spotlight and because of the attention it is receiving, the powers that be are reconsidering the situation. Ms. Asaad is putting pressure not on government, but on the retailers themselves by organizing boycotts of male-staffed stores. She is also putting together lingerie training workshops for ladies, and she is spreading the word about her movement through social networking sites like Facebook, which I believe has a fan page where you can keep up with new developments.
I do like her approach in terms of confronting the issue at a consumer level. I hope that the owners of the lingerie shops start taking notice and begin employing some women. I do not say this as an American or as a desensitized Venezuelan, but as a man who acknowledges his limited knowledge of women's undergarments and stands in solidarity with women who I believe can best equip a lady with the garments she needs to feel comfortable and look fabulous.
A correction of sorts: 06 Nov 2010 - When I wrote this blog, I wrote that I had yet to hear a Moroccan street vendor advertise that he was selling women's underwear. Well, the other day as I was walking through Khenifra's souq, I heard a young kid probably about 15 years old yelling in auctioneer mode "SLIP, SLIP, SLIP, miyatayn ryal (10DH)". I was happy to hear it. I only wished I had been walking with a female so that I could then observe how he would go about promoting the quality of his product. Oh well, next time, inshallah.
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