Fighting against sexism in french speaking countries

Some time ago when I was listening to music I discovered an album (which is actually pretty new because it was released in October 2018) of some French speaking girl which I really liked since I was hearing her songs for a first time. Her lyrics aren’t so obvious because they are full of symbols, metaphors and she is referring to some events in the pas which I had to discover to understand her songs properly (well, clearly).

One of her songs which is titled “Balance ton quoi” refers to a huge event in the internet which in French speaking country is named #BalanceTonPorc and in English speaking countries #MeeToo. This is a feminist move which fight for equality between male and female. I had no idea that this event is so enormous and that plenty of women and some men took a part in this by posting their photos with hashtag #MeeToo. Than I’ve red a lot about inequality in France, and Belgium on particular, because she is a Belgian singer and I wanted to know what exactly they are fighting for.

First of all they are fighting for equality in work. I was disappointed when I red that but in Belgium some people think that women are naturally less attracted to the profession of engineering and  “there are studies that prove it" What is more, they are treated badly at work and usually can not achieve higher positions by their sex.

This problem deeply affects not only Belgians but also citizens of other French-speaking countries. Another Swiss singer Chilla in her song titled ‘#Balancetonporc also shows her attitude to sexists around the world.

My aupair experience

When you want to visit amazing places and have fun with lovely family you can try go on vacation like jeune fille au pair. This experience can give you many advantages; you can develop your language capacities, meet people from other cultures, visit your dreamed places. 

Even If my voyage wasn't perfect I want to recommend you this way of spending holidays. 

I really wanted to speak better French and I'm sure it helped me a lot. What is more I made there some friends and I've chosen city where my French friend study for Erasmus in next semester. 

What is more children are lovely and you can have a lot of fun with them. I've learned plenty of games there and no, from time to time I play them with my little sister. 

Everything can sound like a fairytale but in most cases it isn't. The family you can see in the photos is adorable, but I've spent with them just one week because little girl i was taking care of wanted to go to her godfather and that's why I've been there. They wanted to spend time with me, showed me Paris and gave me freedom. The second family wasn't so great because for 3 I had to be with the girls almost all the time, but you have to know that is not how it should look like.

There are some things you must discuss with your famille d'accueil before you go there. 

1.Your working hours

For me it was really difficult to work there because according to parents I had to be always with girls. You have to remember that au pair is not a foreign worker but it’s an exchange so girl have to been given a freedom for visiting city or simple relax.

2. Your responsibilities

You must let your family know that you’ll be there for children take care, but not for cleaning their house for hours. Don’t make the same mistakes as I did. :/

3. Freedom and time for yourself

Remember that you go there to visit amazing places, and not just for working. You must discuss time for yourself with your family before you’ll go there. 

Dancehall

Today, I will tell you a bit about my new passion which is dancehall. The style thanks to which I was able to feel the love of dancing again and which gives me satisfaction and self-confidence.

Dancehall is a dance style that comes from the Caribbean island of Jamaica. It was created in the Kingston ghettos and initially it was danced mainly by men. Currently, everyone is dancing in Jamaica - men, women and even children. It is an expression of emotion, expression, detachment from everyday life, and even spiritual purification for Jamaican residents.

Dancehall is not without reason called the street dance: the name "dance hall" means the space where dance parties take place, i.e. courtyards, markets or simply streets.

This dance style began with the rise of reggae music in the 1970s. After the death of Bob Marley, in 1981, in Jamaica there was a breakthrough in music. Elemental, strong, rhythmic songs began to displace chillout and calm reggae burdens. So far, music was played live, so it had a smaller audience range, but everything changed when in 1985 the first song created by means of electronics was made. This event is considered the beginning of a new era in dancehall music and the emergence of the reggae variety, which has been called the ragga.

Dancehall is danced by both men and women, but these two styles are slightly different. The steps in the male dancehall are based on strong, aggressive movements. To a large extent they consist of chest insulation, a large proportion of hands and strong strong rock bursts. It is a dance symbolizing strength and energy. In Jamaica, men can only dance in this way, while women can choose both male steps and those designed specifically for the female sex.

The feminine style is called Dancehall Female and Dancehall Queen Style. Dancehall Female is more sensual and "soft". It abounds in movements shaking the bottom (twerking), swinging the hips and demonstrating the strengths of the female figure. Dancehall Queen Style is a dance that is additionally enriched with acrobatic elements, such as shaking a bum in a twine or while standing on the head.

 In Jamaica every year there is a competition for the best dancehall dancer who later gets the nickname "dancehall queen". It is a real women's festival. Today I was talking to my dancehall teacher who was in Jamaica at this big festival and I’ve seen a video on her participating in this. I’m so impressed of her and the other participants moves and I’ve decided that from now my second dream (after Ariana Grande’s concert) is going to Jamaica and learn dance from the best teachers there. I’ve also heard that when people hear some music it’s so naturally to start dancing for them. (Try to imagine someone on the street who starts dancing. In Poland we would probably thing that he is psychopath. But in Jamaica It’s so normal.) So that is kind of heaven for me to dance every time I want to do it and don’t be afraid of others judgments.

Here you have some videos of me dancing dancehall.

First video is a male dancehall – you can see it by some strong and aggressive moves. (I'm in black shirt and a ponytail :P)

Second and third is a female dancehall – more sensual, a lot of shaking and twerking

S

Next week i'm gonna try afrodance style! I'm so excited and I can't wait to tell you more about it. ;D