A Bad Rap

This rap song by the Belgian-Moroccan group Redouane le deglingue is causing quite the international controversy.

At 3:26 in the video, the rapper says, "J’épouserai le Maroc après avoir baisé la Belgique” which translates "I will marry Morocco after having fucked Belgium".

I've listened to the song a few times, but my street French isn't good enough to understand it, and I can't seem to find the lyrics online. So I don't know what the context of the song is, but the video shows a number of Moroccan youth in Belgium with Moroccan flags. And the overall message seems to be one of discontent with Belgium and pride in their Moroccan heritage.

On the political level, there seems to be an issue of integration to say the very least. Belgium, along with Spain, Italy and the Netherlands, do a much poorer job integrating Moroccans than Germany does.

But what struck me most was how the sexual metaphor used to illustrate this political malaise parallels what I have seen and heard again and again from Moroccans. Most Moroccan guys are happy to fool around with prostitutes and foreign girls (who are inevitably promiscuous). But when it comes time to start a family, they marry the "bread of the house", as one traditional Moroccan song puts it.

Yesterday, Daniel asked his class if Moroccan women were expected to be virgins when they get married. All the students nodded 'yes'. Then he asked if Moroccan men were expected to be virgins when they get married. All the students said, "no".

Then Daniel explained the meaning of "double standard".