PARIS — Eighteen shiny silver coins, 20 turquoise beads and a square of coral — and that is merely for the headdress of a Berber bride.
Worn across the chest of the tribeswoman are silver chains, circlets attached to more chains, chunks of amber inset with egg-shaped silver baubles and glass beads in red, green, yellow and black, colors that symbolize fertility.
Can jewels be about empowerment as well as adornment? That is the question posed by a fascinating exhibition here that focuses on North Africa.
“Berber Women of Morocco,” at the Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent until July 20, transports the viewer to the Atlas Mountains by way of the Berber Museum. The museum is in a former artist’s studio at the Jardin Majorelle in Marrakesh, Morocco, and was restored by Mr. Bergé and Saint Laurent before the couturier’s death to house their collection of more than 600 Berber items.
By preserving the ritual objects of this centuries-old society, the two men created an archive that goes far beyond tribal clothing. Film and photographs taken in the early- to mid-20th century, for example, bring the embellishments vividly to life.
Photo
Credit Nicolas Mateus, Luc Castel
There are no vitrines of clothes in the exhibition, in part because Berber body coverings are flat fabrics folded around the body and held together with jewelry. But Bjorn Dahlstrom, the curator of the Majorelle museum and this exhibition, has taken that one step closer to abstraction by displaying the clothes only as images projected on flat screens under a twinkling starry “sky.”
So the display cases focus on the jewelry, in all its hefty intensity, giving some inkling of the significance of these pieces and their origins. Items from different peoples, including Arabs and Jews, who blended with the Berbers, make for a feast for the eyes.
The clinking, weighty objects — wondrous inventions of sculpture and decoration — are significant for the messages they create.
Fertility was inevitably on that list, but wealth and social hierarchy were worked in, along with the filigree decoration.
In the accompanying book, published by Artlys, an essay by Cynthia Becker, a professor of art and architecture history at Boston University, explains how the body adornments are not only masterpieces of Berber identity, but also reveal the strength of women within their tribal worlds. There is a fierceness to the pieces, with their bright, beaten silver contrasting with colorful stones, each with a particular meaning.
While not suggesting warrior women, not one piece could remotely be associated with decorative jewelry, as most societies today perceive it.
Yet there are touching examples of comradeship.
One of the pictures in a slide show, taken in the 1930s, shows women’s hands creating a circle around a woven cloth holding tangerines. Each wrist has four, five or six bracelets; fingers are thick with rings. But the image is of unity, rather than decoration.
And although the Berber women of this century have learned to appreciate gold more than silver, they still wear the ancestral pieces for weddings, proving that what have often been described as “accessories” are still at the heart of their world.
The exhibition is to travel next year to Manama, Bahrain, and Rabat, Morocco.
MAROC IN MODE' SOURCING EVENT
MAROC IN MODE' SOURCING EVENT
“Very efficient, good new contacts and competent”, was the result of the Trade Mission ´Maroc in Mode` at the Düsseldorf Fashion House. 16 Moroccan clothing manufactures from the upstream textile supply field were presenting a range of textiles for the production of in-house collections in the field of denim, casualwear, shirts and knitwear. The sourcing event was organized by Amith, the trade body for Moroccan textile and clothing manufacturers. In attendance were fashion and retail companies such as Holy Fashion Group, Ahlers Group, Marc O´Polo, Hess Natur, Felina as well as Kaufhof, Peek & Cloppenburg and Charles Vögele. Morocco´s textile and clothing industry has a good reputation and especially jeans and piece-dyed casual pants are enjoying a growing demand.
As a consequence of the rising production costs in Asia, Morocco´s textile and clothing industry has increasingly moved into the focus of fashion producers as a safe and comfortable sourcing option. “Duty-free delivery to the EU, short distances involved in transit, as well as environmentally friendly and sustainable production methods are some advantages that make Morocco attractive for international manufacturers”, explained Christiane Schultz from Amith. As the demand for internationally accepted certifications such as BSCI, ISO, Oeko-Tex and GOTS is increasing, many Moroccan companies are already certified and their production corresponds to the requirements of social acceptability and sustainability. The Trade Mission is the preliminary event for the fairs “Maroc in Mode” & “Maroc Sourcing” held in Casablanca from 15 to 16th October, with an expected attendance of 200 clothing manufacturers from Morocco and the Euromed region
“Very efficient, good new contacts and competent”, was the result of the Trade Mission ´Maroc in Mode` at the Düsseldorf Fashion House. 16 Moroccan clothing manufactures from the upstream textile supply field were presenting a range of textiles for the production of in-house collections in the field of denim, casualwear, shirts and knitwear. The sourcing event was organized by Amith, the trade body for Moroccan textile and clothing manufacturers. In attendance were fashion and retail companies such as Holy Fashion Group, Ahlers Group, Marc O´Polo, Hess Natur, Felina as well as Kaufhof, Peek & Cloppenburg and Charles Vögele. Morocco´s textile and clothing industry has a good reputation and especially jeans and piece-dyed casual pants are enjoying a growing demand.
As a consequence of the rising production costs in Asia, Morocco´s textile and clothing industry has increasingly moved into the focus of fashion producers as a safe and comfortable sourcing option. “Duty-free delivery to the EU, short distances involved in transit, as well as environmentally friendly and sustainable production methods are some advantages that make Morocco attractive for international manufacturers”, explained Christiane Schultz from Amith. As the demand for internationally accepted certifications such as BSCI, ISO, Oeko-Tex and GOTS is increasing, many Moroccan companies are already certified and their production corresponds to the requirements of social acceptability and sustainability. The Trade Mission is the preliminary event for the fairs “Maroc in Mode” & “Maroc Sourcing” held in Casablanca from 15 to 16th October, with an expected attendance of 200 clothing manufacturers from Morocco and the Euromed region
Manager of Museum Security Hanson is also a globetrotter
I am surprised. I really enjoyed this series, but this article left me wanting. Too bad, as the others in the series were very well done.
Manager of Museum Security Operations Timothy Hanson is a true Mainer. Growing up in Rumford, Hanson led a normal life with loving parents and traditional schooling. In his junior year of high school, his horizons expanded past Maine, when he learned that his passion lay in a six-lettered word—travel.
“When I was in high school, I started taking a Spanish class and convinced my teacher to bring us to Mexico...It was pretty wild,” he said. “She was a fantastic teacher and I was amazed that she was convinced because it was a bunch of 16, 17 year olds that she was going to bring to Mexico. And then I got the bug for languages and travel at that point.”
In his final year of high school Hanson went to Mexico City to explore. He rented a hotel for 30 days, immersing himself in the culture. On his trip he got his passport stolen and admits to making some poor choices.
“I figured, I survived. ...The experience of being so far from home, in a different culture, feeling how other people feel and perceive the United States...is really, really an amazing experience.”
After graduating high school, Hanson attended University of Maine in Orono. There he studied French, Spanish and Russian, earning a degree in Modern Languages. In college, Hanson studied in southern Spain for a year and visited Morocco and France. After graduation, however, Hanson struggled to find a job in his field.
“I wasn’t too excited about the employment prospects, so I decided that I would get certified as an ESL teacher,” he said. “I did that and then I went to Spain with the intent of teaching English as a foreign language. It didn’t work out because in 2008 the economy there was really hitting the pits. I stayed there for about eight months and then I came back and I needed a job, so I found a job in security, just as a security officer in a corporate account. I did that for a few years and then I came here.”
Hanson now lives in Brunswick with his wife, who also loves to travel. They save money for traveling and enjoy back-trail hiking. This fall they are going to Barcelona and Paris.
At Bowdoin, Hanson is responsible for management of all security at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, working with the Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum and the campus. At the art museum, he generally runs into three different groups of visitors: visiting students, members of the Brunswick community and Bowdoin students. Hanson particularly enjoys when Bowdoin students visit because of their familiarity with the security and staff members. He recalled a humerous incident when a visitor did not fall into any of these categories.
“Working at the museum, often times you get unique personalities,” he said. “There was one gentleman who just had a very strange way with acting. He would make all sorts of gestures at the artwork while he was looking at it. He would shoot his arms out at the artwork and do little dances in front of it. The gentleman would come into the museum, change his clothing—put on different shoes and socks—the whole nine yards—go in, look at the art, come back out, change, again, to go home.”
Manager of Museum Security Operations Timothy Hanson is a true Mainer. Growing up in Rumford, Hanson led a normal life with loving parents and traditional schooling. In his junior year of high school, his horizons expanded past Maine, when he learned that his passion lay in a six-lettered word—travel.
“When I was in high school, I started taking a Spanish class and convinced my teacher to bring us to Mexico...It was pretty wild,” he said. “She was a fantastic teacher and I was amazed that she was convinced because it was a bunch of 16, 17 year olds that she was going to bring to Mexico. And then I got the bug for languages and travel at that point.”
In his final year of high school Hanson went to Mexico City to explore. He rented a hotel for 30 days, immersing himself in the culture. On his trip he got his passport stolen and admits to making some poor choices.
“I figured, I survived. ...The experience of being so far from home, in a different culture, feeling how other people feel and perceive the United States...is really, really an amazing experience.”
After graduating high school, Hanson attended University of Maine in Orono. There he studied French, Spanish and Russian, earning a degree in Modern Languages. In college, Hanson studied in southern Spain for a year and visited Morocco and France. After graduation, however, Hanson struggled to find a job in his field.
“I wasn’t too excited about the employment prospects, so I decided that I would get certified as an ESL teacher,” he said. “I did that and then I went to Spain with the intent of teaching English as a foreign language. It didn’t work out because in 2008 the economy there was really hitting the pits. I stayed there for about eight months and then I came back and I needed a job, so I found a job in security, just as a security officer in a corporate account. I did that for a few years and then I came here.”
Hanson now lives in Brunswick with his wife, who also loves to travel. They save money for traveling and enjoy back-trail hiking. This fall they are going to Barcelona and Paris.
At Bowdoin, Hanson is responsible for management of all security at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, working with the Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum and the campus. At the art museum, he generally runs into three different groups of visitors: visiting students, members of the Brunswick community and Bowdoin students. Hanson particularly enjoys when Bowdoin students visit because of their familiarity with the security and staff members. He recalled a humerous incident when a visitor did not fall into any of these categories.
“Working at the museum, often times you get unique personalities,” he said. “There was one gentleman who just had a very strange way with acting. He would make all sorts of gestures at the artwork while he was looking at it. He would shoot his arms out at the artwork and do little dances in front of it. The gentleman would come into the museum, change his clothing—put on different shoes and socks—the whole nine yards—go in, look at the art, come back out, change, again, to go home.”
From child bride to mayor, Berivan Kilic tells her story
From child bride to mayor, Berivan Kilic tells her story
Berivan added, “Women across Turkey may experience similar hardships, but ours is different. We are put down as Kurds. We paid a price for rebelling against the state. We suffered from poverty, and we have also gone through the worst abuse in our homes from our husbands. We try to tear down too many layers of victimhood. And they tell us that we live in the millennium age.”
KOCAKOY, Turkey — A heavy rain fell as the plane landed in Diyarbakir on the morning of April 13. Along the route from the airport to downtown, scrappy concrete construction defied beauty. In contrast, the Diyarbakir-Bingol/Mus highway leading from Diyarbakir to the district of Kocakoy, roughly 55 kilometers (35 miles) from the city center, was surrounded by green fields of wheat and lentil across the Diyarbakir plateau. I arrived in Kocakoy, a district of 17,000 people, to meet Berivan Kilic, the first woman to hold an elected office in the district's local government.
Berivan added, “Women across Turkey may experience similar hardships, but ours is different. We are put down as Kurds. We paid a price for rebelling against the state. We suffered from poverty, and we have also gone through the worst abuse in our homes from our husbands. We try to tear down too many layers of victimhood. And they tell us that we live in the millennium age.”
KOCAKOY, Turkey — A heavy rain fell as the plane landed in Diyarbakir on the morning of April 13. Along the route from the airport to downtown, scrappy concrete construction defied beauty. In contrast, the Diyarbakir-Bingol/Mus highway leading from Diyarbakir to the district of Kocakoy, roughly 55 kilometers (35 miles) from the city center, was surrounded by green fields of wheat and lentil across the Diyarbakir plateau. I arrived in Kocakoy, a district of 17,000 people, to meet Berivan Kilic, the first woman to hold an elected office in the district's local government.
Berivan was waiting for me in front of her single-story home, just two blocks from a mosque. She wore a burgundy head covering, a long, black, partially pleated skirt and a gray, black and white long-sleeve top. Berivan greeted me with the air of a confident yet reserved woman.
“Had it not rained, I would have taken you on foot around the town and maybe even to adjacent villages, but we will have to have our conversation inside, this time,” she said. We sat in her parents’ home, with two rooms, a bathroom and a hallway that served as an open kitchen.
“When I made my decision to divorce my husband, I first told my father. He knew too well that I stayed in that marriage for him for more than enough years, despite all the physical and verbal abuse,” Berivan said with a sigh, lighting a cigarette.
“My dad understood that I was determined. He then had two choices. He would either accept me back under his roof or let me find my way alone with my two sons. The latter promised more trouble, so he chose to go with the first one. I now live with my parents,” Berivan said. Married at age 15, she is now a divorced woman with her sons, Emre, 16, and Furkan, 12.
“When Emre turned 12, he was diagnosed with a genetic disease. He is slowly losing his brain cells, and that makes him weak and bedridden. He can’t walk anymore without assistance. We don’t know whether Furkan will have the same fate. This all happened because I got married to my cousin, my aunt’s son,” Berivan said.
“Mine was an arranged marriage. There were two other families asking for me, but I thought my cousin would be a safer bet and that he would take good care of me. For the entire 14 years I was married to him, he proved my judgment desperately wrong.”
Berivan also told Al-Monitor details of her early life and the problems her family confronted. “I was born here in Kocakoy,” she began. “My father was accused in 1991 of being a member of the Kurdistan Workers Party [PKK]. He was held in Diyarbakir prison for about six months and was released due to lack of evidence. Yet, he was working for the state-owned Turkish Electricity Distribution Co. We were first sent into exile in Yozgat, and then he was assigned to Siverek. My dad had to withdraw me from school [at age 11], because there were lots of incidents between the military and the PKK. It was not a safe environment for anyone. We used to live with our doors locked and windows closed regardless of how hot it was in the summertime. There were numerous stories that the security officers had kidnapped Kurds [affiliated with the PKK] from their beds. So I have no hard feelings for my dad. I knew he did the right thing to protect me.”
Suppressing her desire for a proper education, Berivan turned to housekeeping and got carried away with dreams of being a mother at an early age and raising a family.
“Look,” she said, “I really don’t understand why people treat me as if I am an alien. It was natural for us here to get married at 15 and give birth as early as that age. I would not characterize us [Kurds] as a primarily conservative society, but there is an incredible amount of [societal] pressure. We care too much about how others judge or talk about us. And that is the key dilemma,” Berivan asserted.
“Divorce is a shameful act for us. It’s totally out of the question. There were even people here who questioned my dad about how he could have allowed me back [into his home] with my children. To them, the children should stay with their father. But I got custody of my sons. I am grateful to my parents for standing behind me. … We [Kurdish women] live in our own worlds, with little education, totally dependent on men. We also glorify men. We, as women, are guilty of making them feel as if they’re superhumans or superior to us.”
Berivan was elected co-mayor of Kocakoy on March 30. “I certainly had the approval of my family — both of my parents and my four siblings, one sister and three brothers. I fought for three years to get a divorce, and I did it. I am 33 now.”
A street in Kocakoy, April 13, 2014. (photo by Tulin Daloglu)
“We [in the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP)] were elected by receiving the clear majority of the votes here. And I happen to be the first woman to occupy that office. When I campaigned, I visited people’s homes, and opened my heart to them, but I did not promise any specific projects. Still I saw them coming out to support my campaign, and they are now visiting me at the office to congratulate me,” Berivan told Al-Monitor.
“Look, this is how I intend to make a difference — by proving to people that if I can make it, they can make it, too. After the divorce, I finished secondary school and am now taking high school courses. I believe I will get my diploma in two years, and then I will definitely attend a university. I will lead by example, by showing people how one can change her fate and that we are not destined to live a life that deprives us of our dignity and happiness,” she said.
Berivan’s experience is not unique in this country. While child marriage is more common in the predominantly Kurdish areas, it is widespread. The same holds true for domestic violence, which can be found at all income levels and among every ethic and religious group.
Sengul Hablemitoglu, dean of the faculty of health sciences and social services at Ankara University told Al-Monitor, “One out of every three marriages in our country involves [girls] under 17 years of age. That is to say, 33% of the marriages in this country are child marriages.” Hablemitoglu further explained, “According to our laws, it is not legally possible without the consent of the parents to marry before [turning 18]. However, families give consent to marry their girls at early ages, and they tie the knot in religious marriage ceremonies. These kids then lose their self-esteem, their self-confidence and accept all sorts of physical and verbal abuse as the norm.”
Oddly enough, Berivan shares her mayoral seat with Abdullah Kar, a fellow BDP member and an imam. He declined to answer questions from Al-Monitor about imams’ role in executing marriages with child brides. After all, if the imams acted in accord with the law and refused to carry out these religious contracts, the mosques would not be implicated in this illegal practice.
One of Berivan’s neighbors, who asked to remain anonymous, told Al-Monitor, “This is a feudal society, where men dominate everything and are accustomed to ruling. What Berivan symbolizes is a hope, an inspiration, but her election to office can’t fix these problems all at once.”
One Kocakoy resident, Firat Kilic, agreed. “Men have also changed here. They don’t want their daughters to experience the same things [as their mothers, wives and sisters], and go through the same pains. Our hearts softened. Love changes it all,” he told Al-Monitor.
Huseyin Yildiz, who was elected mukhtar for the first time in March, expressed a similar sentiment though with some reservation. “Child marriage has started to drop in number, but it is still there. We also have families who suffer from domestic violence. We can’t claim it doesn’t exist, but people started to distance themselves from such conduct. That is what matters.”
This is what Berivan counts on. “We still value the words of our elders here. One of my projects is to rally those elders in our society to be more vocal and engage in times of crisis with [troubled] families. I am going to help provide family counseling, where we will have psychologists also talk to the men. Until now, we all focused on the women. Without engaging the men in these therapies, however, we can’t advance,” Berivan told Al-Monitor.
“It is also time we start openly discussing the core reasons as to why girls find themselves desperate enough to marry at 14 or 15 years old. Change will come in time, but I took a step forward to make a difference. I hope people all across the country will come and hold our hands for moving forward, breaking the chain of this vicious cycle of desperation.” Berivan’s eyes sparkled as she talked of opening up new opportunities for earning income for the women of her town. “Cemil Ipekci is a well-known fashion designer who helped women in Mardin. I will be thrilled if he comes to our town with a similar project in mind.”
Looking at her younger son, the new co-mayor-elect says, “I divorced my husband because I realized that I was harming them by staying married. I stepped into politics, because I am sincerely worried about what kind of a world we’re leaving our children. There is too much violence and inexplicable crimes. We should all try to do better for our children.”
Notorious 'Bonnie and Clyde' thief who stole $120,000 from friends before going on global spending spree with lover arrested for shoplifting
Notorious 'Bonnie and Clyde' thief who stole $120,000 from friends before going on global spending spree with lover arrested for shoplifting
The scheme was so elaborate that removing Anderton’s computer from the apartment caused the entire building’s internet access to go down, authorities said.
Kirsch told a packed courtroom during her 2008 sentencing that her ‘regret runs bone deep and she will never repeat this mistake again,’ according to KYW.
That was just another con for what appears to be a career criminal.
She was sentenced to five years in prison, Anderton received four. Both were released early on good behavior - Kirsch only three years and five months into her sentence in November 2011.
A Monday court hearing will determine how long her latest transgressions will land her in the slammer.
Jocelyn Kirsch was caught shoplifting in 2012 in violation of her probation
She and former boyfriend Edward Anderton both served time behind bars for a $120,00 identity theft scheme in 2007
Kirsch was previously released in November 2011 on good behavior three years and five months into a five year prison sentence
A Monday court hearing will determine how long Kirsch serves behind bars for both the thefts and failing to pay restitution
One half of an infamous pair of identity thieves dubbed ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ has found herself back behind bars.
Jocelyn Kirsch, 28, has been detained at a federal prison in Philadelphia after violating her probation by shoplifting two years ago in California and failing to pay restitution for her previous crimes.
The brunette and then-boyfriend Edward Anderton rose to infamy in 2007 after being convicted of stealing almost $120,000 from friends and neighbors to spend on vacations, clothing, jewelry and other luxuries including $2,000 hair extensions.
Kirsch, living in California since being released from prison in 2011, was busted in 2012 for shoplifting clothes from Banana Republic, BCBG, J. Crew and Nordstrom’s stores in a Walnut Creek Mall, according to the Philadelphia Daily News.
She was observed by a Nordstrom employee carrying multiple items of clothing and an expensive Tory Burch handbag before going into a dressing room and emerging without any of the clothes, according to a 2012 report filed by the U.S. Probation Office cited by the paper.
The employee said she then placed the designer clutch on a chair and left the store before returning and taking it without paying, according to the report.
She copped to stealing both the purse and a dress she damaged by removing a sensor when returned to the store by a staff member.
Bonnie and Clyde: The pair's yearlong romance was dominated by extravagance at the expense of others
Questioning by police led her to further admit stealing about $318 worth of clothing from Banana Republic that she had in a shopping bag she was holding. The store declined to prosecute because the thefts were not witnessed by a store employee, the report said.
Further investigation led police to find further stolen items in her car.
‘Kirsch admitted to stealing some of the merchandise and claimed it was stolen several weeks earlier,’ said the report. Neither J. Crew, nor BCBG pressed charges either.
But Nordstrom’s did.
The terms of her parole forbid her from committing any more crimes. Kirsch’s conviction landed another year in jail and in violation of that parole.
She also failed to make any of the court-ordered $250 monthly restitution payments to the victims of a scam that saw her and Anderton opening credit cards, writing checks and even just stealing cash from others.
They spent the money on lavish vacations to the Caribbean, Hawaii, Europe and even Morocco, according to The Guardian.
Tropical oasis: This Caribbean vacation was paid for with someone else's credit card
Anderton and Kirsch dined in the best restaurants and attended the most exclusive parties. They flaunted their excess on Facebook and in Philadelphia’s society pages – their conspicuous lifestyle led to their downfall.
‘Jocelyn and Ed made performance art out of their extravagance,’ said the Guardian in a scathing account of the couple’s scam.
They were busted after writing phony checks to a Philadelphia salon for those costly hair extensions. A little digging by the stylist led her to a postal box rented at UPS Store on the campus of Drexel University, where Kirsch was a student.
The scheme was so elaborate that removing Anderton’s computer from the apartment caused the entire building’s internet access to go down, authorities said.
Kirsch told a packed courtroom during her 2008 sentencing that her ‘regret runs bone deep and she will never repeat this mistake again,’ according to KYW.
That was just another con for what appears to be a career criminal.
She was sentenced to five years in prison, Anderton received four. Both were released early on good behavior - Kirsch only three years and five months into her sentence in November 2011.
A Monday court hearing will determine how long her latest transgressions will land her in the slammer.
She and former boyfriend Edward Anderton both served time behind bars for a $120,00 identity theft scheme in 2007
Kirsch was previously released in November 2011 on good behavior three years and five months into a five year prison sentence
A Monday court hearing will determine how long Kirsch serves behind bars for both the thefts and failing to pay restitution
One half of an infamous pair of identity thieves dubbed ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ has found herself back behind bars.
Jocelyn Kirsch, 28, has been detained at a federal prison in Philadelphia after violating her probation by shoplifting two years ago in California and failing to pay restitution for her previous crimes.
The brunette and then-boyfriend Edward Anderton rose to infamy in 2007 after being convicted of stealing almost $120,000 from friends and neighbors to spend on vacations, clothing, jewelry and other luxuries including $2,000 hair extensions.
Kirsch, living in California since being released from prison in 2011, was busted in 2012 for shoplifting clothes from Banana Republic, BCBG, J. Crew and Nordstrom’s stores in a Walnut Creek Mall, according to the Philadelphia Daily News.
She was observed by a Nordstrom employee carrying multiple items of clothing and an expensive Tory Burch handbag before going into a dressing room and emerging without any of the clothes, according to a 2012 report filed by the U.S. Probation Office cited by the paper.
The employee said she then placed the designer clutch on a chair and left the store before returning and taking it without paying, according to the report.
She copped to stealing both the purse and a dress she damaged by removing a sensor when returned to the store by a staff member.
Bonnie and Clyde: The pair's yearlong romance was dominated by extravagance at the expense of others
Questioning by police led her to further admit stealing about $318 worth of clothing from Banana Republic that she had in a shopping bag she was holding. The store declined to prosecute because the thefts were not witnessed by a store employee, the report said.
Further investigation led police to find further stolen items in her car.
‘Kirsch admitted to stealing some of the merchandise and claimed it was stolen several weeks earlier,’ said the report. Neither J. Crew, nor BCBG pressed charges either.
But Nordstrom’s did.
The terms of her parole forbid her from committing any more crimes. Kirsch’s conviction landed another year in jail and in violation of that parole.
She also failed to make any of the court-ordered $250 monthly restitution payments to the victims of a scam that saw her and Anderton opening credit cards, writing checks and even just stealing cash from others.
They spent the money on lavish vacations to the Caribbean, Hawaii, Europe and even Morocco, according to The Guardian.
Tropical oasis: This Caribbean vacation was paid for with someone else's credit card
Anderton and Kirsch dined in the best restaurants and attended the most exclusive parties. They flaunted their excess on Facebook and in Philadelphia’s society pages – their conspicuous lifestyle led to their downfall.
‘Jocelyn and Ed made performance art out of their extravagance,’ said the Guardian in a scathing account of the couple’s scam.
They were busted after writing phony checks to a Philadelphia salon for those costly hair extensions. A little digging by the stylist led her to a postal box rented at UPS Store on the campus of Drexel University, where Kirsch was a student.
She helped police set up a sting operation claiming the girl had left a textbook at the salon, the pair refused to meet the woman but made the mistake of threatening her to back off, police told the Guardian.
‘You don't know my name but I know yours. I also know ur nice place on wolf st and how u get home at night (sic),’ read a text message sent to the stylist by the thieves.
‘Youre (sic) the one who should be worried... you seem like a smart girl, walk away now or you will regret it.’
It's all gone: The pair are now separated and live on opposite sides of the country
No longer free: Kirsch can't see any rainbows from her prison cell
They were arrested retrieving a package of lingerie delivered to the post box but addressed to their across-the-hall neighbor.
Police soon burst into their luxurious downtown apartment to find an extensive identity theft operation.
Evidence recovered included a professional ID maker, computer spyware and lock-picking tools, police told the Guardian.
Misery of Morocco's small-farmers
Misery of Morocco's small-scale farmers
Thus, the mode of production is changing. The foreign investors' work method is undermining that of the prominent locals. Contractual relationships are replacing patriarchal ones. This is also leading to a development in production and thus an increase in export. Usually, revenue is used to buy new plots of land, which are combined to create large farms that enter into the capitalist economic cycle. Over time, the number of small-scale farmers has shrunk and they go to the cities. And the cities do not welcome farmers with open arms.
I came up with the idea of writing about Moroccan farmers while I was looking at Vincent van Gogh's "Farmers Planting Potatoes." The misery of the scene is apparent in the choice of colors and blending of forms. It seems that the misery of small-scale farmers has not diminished with time. In Morocco, 71% of farming is carried out by small-scale farmers on less than five hectares [12.4 acres] of land. Furthermore, an additional 25% of farming land is cultivated by farmers owning plots less than 10 hectares in size. Thus, 96% of farming in Morocco is carried out on small farms. And these farmers suffer from many problems.
In October of each year, it costs farmers 600 Moroccan dirhams [$74] to till a single hectare three times. The cost of planting 180 kilograms [397 pounds] of seeds costs 600 dirhams, and farmers must pay another 700 dirhams for 41 kilograms [90 pounds] of fertilizer. In February, they must add another 41 kilograms of salted fertilizer, at a cost of 350 dirhams. In March, they pay another 150 dirham for pesticides. When the stalks appear, they must spray another chemical costing 400 dirhams to protect the stalks so that they do not die out. Harvesting also costs 350 dirham per hectare. Thus, in total, the farmer is paying $390 [per hectare].
In a good harvest season, the farmer will harvest 820 kilograms, while in an average season he will only get 410 kilograms (each kilogram is worth about 73 cents). Thus, farmers nearly go bankrupt carrying out their work. The majority of farmers are planting the same crop, thus when the crop is ready the price collapses. Small-scale farmers do not receive any funding to help them advance, and they are aware that the crisis of capitalism is like diabetes, it cannot be treated fully but one must deal with it … thus, they are eager to plow their lands every year.
Climate fluctuations
Production is linked to climate fluctuations. In rainy years the fields thrive, and because the crops are plentiful it costs more to harvest and treat them. And when the harvest is plentiful, the price decreases. Thus, the farmer is subject to the mercy of supply and demand. As for years when there is a dry spell or it rains irregularly, the farmer is not even able to recoup the amount he spent on cultivating the land. Usually, in the case of the latter, he lets his cattle graze on the remaining crop. It is worth noting that in recent years rain patterns have become more chaotic. One week there will be a torrential downpour of 200 millimeters [8 inches] that sweeps away the fertile earth, while during the next two or three months the sky will not bestow a single drop of rain. These fluctuations in weather affect the crops.
Farmers explain the volatility of nature as resulting from God's wrath. They view the droughts and the floods as a form of divine punishment in light of the increase in evil and "deviation." Note that I say increase, not emergence, of evil. Evil existed in the past, but it was rare and veiled. Now, however, it is prevalent and in the open. Thus, for example, the imam of a village mosque will implore people to refrain from embracing the "haram" [religiously forbidden], so that the sky will bestow water.
Most of these small farms are used to produce food for the owners; thus, it's rare that farmers have surplus to bring to the market. To compensate for the lack of crops, farmers rely on livestock. Grass feed for the livestock is often brought from the neighboring large farms, or they graze on the side of the road for free.
Small-scale farmers work on their lands throughout the day, without having specific working hours. This is not the only problem, but also the yield is meager compared to the number of hours they work. And due to the weakness of purchasing power, small-scale farmers feel that they are working for free. Most of the time, men refuse to do this, and to compensate for losses and reduce costs they rely on employing family members, particularly women. Females are the most likely to submit to being controlled, due to the fragility of their situation. Women frequently fear divorce, so they end up working while the husbands sit under a tree smoking and drinking tea. It is the woman who also milks the cows and churns the milk to sell butter. A farmer who marries a skilled woman will live an easy life. Yet despite this, he will still tell her in an ugly tone, "I've made sacrifices to marry you." When women refuse to comply and flee to the cities, they are accused of "taking the wrong path," and this brings shame for the men in the family.
Small-scale farmers do not benefit from the support of the state program called the Green Morocco Plan, which requires that a farmer has registered his land. The Green Morocco Plan is for large-scale farmers, and the state is aware of this, so they offer women sheep even if they do not own land. If you were to see my grandmother today you would feel anger, because throughout her life no one helped her. She spent 50 years of her life — from 1946 to 1996 — working as a farmer, and she witnessed terrible oppression. During summer breaks from school, I would help graze my grandmother's cows while reading a geography book. When I was in middle school and high school I would buy the textbooks for the next year as soon as I had passed my courses at the end of the school year. I spent my summer vacations in the countryside, studying my geography book in the shade of a tree while my grandmother and grandfather's cows grazed in the scorching sun. I would memorize various countries of the world, from those that border Tunisia all the way to South Africa, and from France to Russia and from Italy to Sweden. Now, as I ponder my life's path — given that I was the son of a farmer who became an employee with a bank card, lived in the city and traveled by plane — I feel that I have made a huge social leap. I have spared myself of what almost consumed my life: milking cows.
A farmer's life
The milk overflows from the cow's udder and spills onto the milker's clothing. It can turn sour within hours, especially in the summer. I hated the farmer's life in summer and winter; the pay was little and the work was plentiful. However, I admit that I have maintained a farmer's thinking, especially when it comes to food and work. I hate eating preserved food, and I wake early every day and work long hours, regardless of how much I have written. The only mistake I have made in this regard is that I sold the land I inherited to buy equipment for filming.
Inheritance plays a big role in the manufacture of small farms. Because of inheritance, ownership of land is split into small tracts. Each division of land results in the establishment of new buildings for housing. This means that farmland decreases as the number of family members increases. Thus, having a large number of children, which was originally a goal aimed at "social prestige," had become a mechanism for systematic impoverishment. And as farms are divided, family relations deteriorate due to inheritance cases in courts, and because women who marry men from other regions sell their share of land. As for the men, they would prefer death to selling land.
Land and politics
Morocco extends 3,000 kilometers [1,864 miles] in length, from Gibraltar to the Tropic of Cancer in the Sahara Desert. The further you head south, the more the problems of farmers increase, as rain decreases and the land becomes less fertile. Natural features — such as the fertility of the land, the availability of water and proximity to roads and cities — dictates the distribution of houses in the villages. Thus, there is a significant demographic shift in the countryside. The mountainous regions have been emptied of their residents, while there has been an increase in population density in the regions of the coastal plains, which welcome farming investments. The latter regions include Souss in southern Agadir, where there are hundreds of thousands of fertile hectares of land and irrigated crops, thanks to several dams such as the Abdulmoumen Dam and the Youssef Ibn Yasin Dam. This is an area where production can be increased, and there are local (wealthy) and foreign investors.
Finally, when it comes to the relationship between land and politics, it is worth noting that those who do not own land have no influence. The owners of large farms are the "masters" of the owners of small farms. It is easy to subject a poor farmer [to one's will] when they are temporary or full-time workers. Small-scale farmers will vote for the large-scale farmers, who maintain a patriarchal discourse. However, the entrance of foreign investors has had a significant influence on the prevailing relations and production. Foreign investors bring in developed technology and rely on mechanization and establishing new production relationships. They heavily employ female workers, and — unlike the locals — often obey the labor laws. Work is carried out under plastic covers when it is very hot, and when production increases they re-evaluate the product. Factories have been established around Agadir for canning vegetables and juice and preserving dairy products.
Thus, the mode of production is changing. The foreign investors' work method is undermining that of the prominent locals. Contractual relationships are replacing patriarchal ones. This is also leading to a development in production and thus an increase in export. Usually, revenue is used to buy new plots of land, which are combined to create large farms that enter into the capitalist economic cycle. Over time, the number of small-scale farmers has shrunk and they go to the cities. And the cities do not welcome farmers with open arms.
I came up with the idea of writing about Moroccan farmers while I was looking at Vincent van Gogh's "Farmers Planting Potatoes." The misery of the scene is apparent in the choice of colors and blending of forms. It seems that the misery of small-scale farmers has not diminished with time. In Morocco, 71% of farming is carried out by small-scale farmers on less than five hectares [12.4 acres] of land. Furthermore, an additional 25% of farming land is cultivated by farmers owning plots less than 10 hectares in size. Thus, 96% of farming in Morocco is carried out on small farms. And these farmers suffer from many problems.
In October of each year, it costs farmers 600 Moroccan dirhams [$74] to till a single hectare three times. The cost of planting 180 kilograms [397 pounds] of seeds costs 600 dirhams, and farmers must pay another 700 dirhams for 41 kilograms [90 pounds] of fertilizer. In February, they must add another 41 kilograms of salted fertilizer, at a cost of 350 dirhams. In March, they pay another 150 dirham for pesticides. When the stalks appear, they must spray another chemical costing 400 dirhams to protect the stalks so that they do not die out. Harvesting also costs 350 dirham per hectare. Thus, in total, the farmer is paying $390 [per hectare].
In a good harvest season, the farmer will harvest 820 kilograms, while in an average season he will only get 410 kilograms (each kilogram is worth about 73 cents). Thus, farmers nearly go bankrupt carrying out their work. The majority of farmers are planting the same crop, thus when the crop is ready the price collapses. Small-scale farmers do not receive any funding to help them advance, and they are aware that the crisis of capitalism is like diabetes, it cannot be treated fully but one must deal with it … thus, they are eager to plow their lands every year.
Climate fluctuations
Production is linked to climate fluctuations. In rainy years the fields thrive, and because the crops are plentiful it costs more to harvest and treat them. And when the harvest is plentiful, the price decreases. Thus, the farmer is subject to the mercy of supply and demand. As for years when there is a dry spell or it rains irregularly, the farmer is not even able to recoup the amount he spent on cultivating the land. Usually, in the case of the latter, he lets his cattle graze on the remaining crop. It is worth noting that in recent years rain patterns have become more chaotic. One week there will be a torrential downpour of 200 millimeters [8 inches] that sweeps away the fertile earth, while during the next two or three months the sky will not bestow a single drop of rain. These fluctuations in weather affect the crops.
Farmers explain the volatility of nature as resulting from God's wrath. They view the droughts and the floods as a form of divine punishment in light of the increase in evil and "deviation." Note that I say increase, not emergence, of evil. Evil existed in the past, but it was rare and veiled. Now, however, it is prevalent and in the open. Thus, for example, the imam of a village mosque will implore people to refrain from embracing the "haram" [religiously forbidden], so that the sky will bestow water.
Most of these small farms are used to produce food for the owners; thus, it's rare that farmers have surplus to bring to the market. To compensate for the lack of crops, farmers rely on livestock. Grass feed for the livestock is often brought from the neighboring large farms, or they graze on the side of the road for free.
Small-scale farmers work on their lands throughout the day, without having specific working hours. This is not the only problem, but also the yield is meager compared to the number of hours they work. And due to the weakness of purchasing power, small-scale farmers feel that they are working for free. Most of the time, men refuse to do this, and to compensate for losses and reduce costs they rely on employing family members, particularly women. Females are the most likely to submit to being controlled, due to the fragility of their situation. Women frequently fear divorce, so they end up working while the husbands sit under a tree smoking and drinking tea. It is the woman who also milks the cows and churns the milk to sell butter. A farmer who marries a skilled woman will live an easy life. Yet despite this, he will still tell her in an ugly tone, "I've made sacrifices to marry you." When women refuse to comply and flee to the cities, they are accused of "taking the wrong path," and this brings shame for the men in the family.
Small-scale farmers do not benefit from the support of the state program called the Green Morocco Plan, which requires that a farmer has registered his land. The Green Morocco Plan is for large-scale farmers, and the state is aware of this, so they offer women sheep even if they do not own land. If you were to see my grandmother today you would feel anger, because throughout her life no one helped her. She spent 50 years of her life — from 1946 to 1996 — working as a farmer, and she witnessed terrible oppression. During summer breaks from school, I would help graze my grandmother's cows while reading a geography book. When I was in middle school and high school I would buy the textbooks for the next year as soon as I had passed my courses at the end of the school year. I spent my summer vacations in the countryside, studying my geography book in the shade of a tree while my grandmother and grandfather's cows grazed in the scorching sun. I would memorize various countries of the world, from those that border Tunisia all the way to South Africa, and from France to Russia and from Italy to Sweden. Now, as I ponder my life's path — given that I was the son of a farmer who became an employee with a bank card, lived in the city and traveled by plane — I feel that I have made a huge social leap. I have spared myself of what almost consumed my life: milking cows.
A farmer's life
The milk overflows from the cow's udder and spills onto the milker's clothing. It can turn sour within hours, especially in the summer. I hated the farmer's life in summer and winter; the pay was little and the work was plentiful. However, I admit that I have maintained a farmer's thinking, especially when it comes to food and work. I hate eating preserved food, and I wake early every day and work long hours, regardless of how much I have written. The only mistake I have made in this regard is that I sold the land I inherited to buy equipment for filming.
Inheritance plays a big role in the manufacture of small farms. Because of inheritance, ownership of land is split into small tracts. Each division of land results in the establishment of new buildings for housing. This means that farmland decreases as the number of family members increases. Thus, having a large number of children, which was originally a goal aimed at "social prestige," had become a mechanism for systematic impoverishment. And as farms are divided, family relations deteriorate due to inheritance cases in courts, and because women who marry men from other regions sell their share of land. As for the men, they would prefer death to selling land.
Land and politics
Morocco extends 3,000 kilometers [1,864 miles] in length, from Gibraltar to the Tropic of Cancer in the Sahara Desert. The further you head south, the more the problems of farmers increase, as rain decreases and the land becomes less fertile. Natural features — such as the fertility of the land, the availability of water and proximity to roads and cities — dictates the distribution of houses in the villages. Thus, there is a significant demographic shift in the countryside. The mountainous regions have been emptied of their residents, while there has been an increase in population density in the regions of the coastal plains, which welcome farming investments. The latter regions include Souss in southern Agadir, where there are hundreds of thousands of fertile hectares of land and irrigated crops, thanks to several dams such as the Abdulmoumen Dam and the Youssef Ibn Yasin Dam. This is an area where production can be increased, and there are local (wealthy) and foreign investors.
Finally, when it comes to the relationship between land and politics, it is worth noting that those who do not own land have no influence. The owners of large farms are the "masters" of the owners of small farms. It is easy to subject a poor farmer [to one's will] when they are temporary or full-time workers. Small-scale farmers will vote for the large-scale farmers, who maintain a patriarchal discourse. However, the entrance of foreign investors has had a significant influence on the prevailing relations and production. Foreign investors bring in developed technology and rely on mechanization and establishing new production relationships. They heavily employ female workers, and — unlike the locals — often obey the labor laws. Work is carried out under plastic covers when it is very hot, and when production increases they re-evaluate the product. Factories have been established around Agadir for canning vegetables and juice and preserving dairy products.
“Best Zoo I've Ever Been To” Rabat Zoo in Morocco
I been to many Zoos in many countries, What I Liked about this one was (most of) the animals were active or playing or interacting with each other, big open enclosures, still some room for improvement some of the smaller animals like mongoose and foxes could do with more space IMO. Its a bit awkward to get to if not driving, we got tram to last stop on line 2 Al Irfane and got blue cab from there 25dh, but could not get a cab back and had to walk couple km's back to tram on busy road, but still worth the trip.
Only 50 dirhams which is under £5... and so much to see, cute animals but some scary ones too and friendly staff! What more could you ask for!
On my annual trip to Rabat I visited the Zoo again in June 2014. Despite the fact that the tickets are cheap it was still relatively quiet (well I did came across two groups of young children). It is still as clean as it was before and I think that this time there were a bit more animals.
In comparison to the old Zoo the staff is this time instructed (and willing) to make sure that people stick by the rules. In the old Zoo you could give a staff member a few Dirham and he would try to annoy the lions by using a stick. On this occasion I actually saw a staff member arguing with some idiots who had thrown candy to a chimpanzee!. Very good!.
This time I noticed that there were two groups of lions, one in the big enclose a bit in the back of the park and one at the entrance.. which you can only see when you look into one of the vacant buildings.... Such a pity, why don't the open the space or put a cafe or restaurant in it?!?..... I am sure people would love to see lions (behind glass) from such a short distance while they are eating and drinking!.
I still say that this is one of the best, if not the best things to do in Rabat. Nobody is bothering you and it is also the only real Zoo in Morocco!. A lovely way to spent two to four hours!.
This is a new zoo and still needs some work but was a perfect diversion for the kids. It's not too big so is navigable, they have done a nice job w/ landscaping (although some of the animal quarters need help) and have stationed snack booths at enough places that you can get something to eat and continue with your trip. There are several large maps posted and the food in the cafe was fine - just know that what's on the menu and what they actually have can be different. Worth the effort.
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