Hshouma: A new book explores sexuality in Morocco
Author Zainab Fasiki examines the ideas behind hshouma (shame) in the North African country.
The former French colony is the focus of her novel which ‘breaks down the taboos associated with sex education and gender identity and exposes everyday misogyny.’
The illustrated work shows how the women Zainab Fasiki draws are compelling and real – whether naked, wearing the veil, in lingerie, in town or in the public baths.
They celebrate the human form and its beauty, mocking a hypocritical masculinity that is afraid of bodies, and challenging one of the pillars on which patriarchal societies rest – whether in North Africa or in Western countries.
Part artistic project, part educational initiative, but also playful and humorous, this graphic novel breaks down the taboos associated with sex education and gender identity and exposes everyday misogyny.
Hshouma is an important book, and Fasiki is a powerful new voice of international feminism.
TIME magazine said her work ‘pairs the artist’s playful illustrations with discussions of sexuality, gender-based violence and censorship.’
‘In my country, Morocco, it’s hshouma (shameful) to discuss certain subjects, notably sexuality and the body, and even more so to want to experience these things,’ she says.
‘To understand what we’re going through, I suggest that together we look at the reign of hshouma in its educational, religious and political dimensions. To break these taboos, I hereby testify to my life as a young Moroccan woman…’
There has been widespread praise for her work with Global Times saying her ‘book took her to a wider audience, in a country where sex education is also taboo.’
Zainab Fasiki was born in Fez in 1994. She trained as a mechanical engineer and is licensed as an illustrator and graphic novelist in her native Morocco.
As an artivist fighting for women’s rights and individual freedoms, Zainab runs comic-strip workshops at universities and non-profits, both in Morocco and around the world.
She is the founder of the /WOMEN POWER/ Collective, which invites female artists to participate in workshops to help nurture the next generation of artists.
In 2018, she won an Amnesty International award for women’s rights. In 2019, she was featured as a Next Generation Leader in TIME magazine. In 2022, she won the Bravery prize at the Angoulême International Comics Festival.
Hshouma: ‘Shame! Bodies and Sexuality In Morocco’ (Zainab Fasiki).
Book cover illustration provided by Clairview Books.
Released: 03 May 2024. 112 pages (paperback). Price: £14.99.
Publisher: Clairview Books.
For more information, visit: https://www.clairviewbooks.com
