Slam Dunk Poetry Competition
Morocco
Encouraging Moroccan Youth to Raise Their Voices
“Quiet … you’re quiet.
You’ve been quiet for some time now,
You’ve been watching the world’s new order from the comfort of your bed.”
These are the opening lines of Hajar Ouknider’s poem “Raise your voice”, which she performed as co-organizer during the second edition of Slam Dunk – Morocco’s biggest slam poetry competition. On a long night in July at the American Arts Center in Casablanca, twelve poets captivated an enthusiastic audience, aiming to earn the judges’ favor to reach the finals and win. The competition offered young people a platform to literally raise their voices and boldly express themselves through spoken word, inspiring both onsite and online spectators to follow their example.
Full house at the American Arts Center Casablanca
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom supported the event for the first time, providing an artistic arena for young liberals and aiming at equipping them with the energy and courage to carry the power of the spoken word into other arenas – or, as Hajar Ouknider perfectly did with her poem, making a strong pledge against conformism, complacency, and lethargy:
“Raise your voice until speaking feels like breathing.
Raise your voice until you get used to its sound again.
Raise your voice until you get used to the power inside you.”
Young people in Morocco need to raise their voices. As of now, they suffer from numerous challenges, including one of the highest youth unemployment rates in the world (at around 35%), a public education system in a deplorable state, and political underrepresentation. Every second citizen is younger than 30, which underlines the importance of this age group for the Kingdom’s future and present. Morocco’s youth represent both a burden and an opportunity, depending on whether they succeed at claiming their place in society.
All Slam Dunk competitors and winners
Nevertheless, few young people participate in elections or engage with political parties and democratic institutions. To become shapers rather than passengers of the future, they have to get more involved, however. They need to raise their voices – and Hajar Ouknider perfectly summarized why:
“So raise your voice lest they misrepresent you
For your silence is the only consent they need”
Video: Slam Dunk Poetry Competition
Shots from the second edition of the National Competition of Spoken Word Poetry Slam Dunk. Documenting it step by step, minute by minute, from the ice-breaking activities to the final applause while crowning the three winners.
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