{"id":23636,"date":"2022-11-16T18:51:23","date_gmt":"2022-11-16T18:51:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/highatlasfoundation.org\/?p=23636"},"modified":"2022-11-17T08:30:06","modified_gmt":"2022-11-17T08:30:06","slug":"dakira-forging-collaborative-pathways-toward-greater-social-solidarity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress-haf.ddev.site\/dakira-forging-collaborative-pathways-toward-greater-social-solidarity\/","title":{"rendered":"Dakira: Forging Collaborative Pathways Toward Greater Social Solidarity"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Soukaina Kherdioui and Amal Mansouri<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Dakira Cultural Coordinators<\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mohammed, from Ighram commune in the Taroudant province, poses with a sign that promotes interfaith solidarity, quoting: \u201cLove your neighbor as yourself,\u201d October 2022. Photo: HAF<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n \u201cI learned that, in the past, people lived together in harmony even though they had different religions. I also learned that it is very important to preserve heritage because if we don’t, it could disappear. I learned that we can learn from our differences and accept them instead of disputing.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n – <\/span><\/i>An eighteen-year-old from Essaouira reflecting on her participation in a summer camp activity facilitated by the High Atlas Foundation within the framework of the USAID Dakira program<\/span><\/p>\n Celebrated on November 16,\u00a0 the <\/span>International Day for Tolerance<\/span><\/a> was designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as an opportunity to reiterate the importance of nurturing tolerance, a fundamental value underlying universal human rights. It is a day to be reminded that differences are to be celebrated and acknowledged, not hidden or rejected. Tolerance is much more than simply accepting \u201cthe other.\u201d It is, rather, a strong belief that all humans ought to be treated with respect and appreciated regardless of their social, cultural and religious backgrounds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Since the launch of the <\/span>USAID Dakira program<\/span><\/a> in 2021, the <\/span>High Atlas Foundation<\/span><\/a> (HAF) and its partners have collaborated to further preserve and transmit Morocco\u2019s multicultural history. Seeking to revive the essence of amicable, centuries-old relationships among various religious and ethnic communities that have undeniably been foundational in shaping the country’s multilayered identity, Dakira is forging a path defined by dialogue and mutual understanding.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In this respect, events and activities are taking\u00a0 place in numerous communities across the country, bringing together civil society actors and local community members with the aim of exploring and strengthening interreligious and inter-ethnic solidarity. <\/span>Intergenerational community dialogues<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>school and youth activities<\/span><\/a>, Hebrew language and Jewish culture courses, and <\/span>digital heritage documentation workshop<\/span><\/a> are among the activities that have taken place so far.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Dakira is working with people of all ages, from primary school students to young adults to community elders,\u00a0 in order to ignite a sense of curiosity among community members to explore their own pluralistic Moroccan pasts and encourage them to broaden their perceptions and understandings of <\/span>tolerance<\/span><\/i>. As people learn about the lives of their grandparents and other ancestors, they learn how the diverse people of Morocco\u00a0 lived in harmony with one another.In this diverse environment of the not-too-distant past, people had different faiths, ethnicities, and traditions, but they chose to empower each other and embrace their differences instead of trying to dismantle dissimilar principles and systems of belief.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n HAF President Yossef Ben-Meir speaks at a community dialogue event in Tiznit, October 2022. Photo: HAF<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n Heritage regeneration and social unity through community dialogues<\/b><\/p>\n Committed to revitalizing Morocco\u2019s pluralistic past through local community efforts, the Dakira facilitates community dialogues and conducts interviews with individuals in order to uncover and collect memories of each region\u2019s blended past. During dialogues, communities engage in discussion about the history and meaning of religious and cultural sites in their locality with the aim to safeguard the gathered narratives and reshare them as a living example of togetherness for current and future generations<\/span>. <\/span>So far, people from the regions of Marrakech-Safi, Fes-Meknes, Rabat-Sale-Kenitra, Draa-Tafilalet, Souss-Massa, and Guelmim-Oued Noun have participated in such activities and events.<\/span><\/p>\n Recently, HAF-Dakira toured seven communities throughout the south of Morocco, where 1,195 local people engaged in <\/span>community heritage dialogue<\/span><\/a>, reflecting on multiculturalism then and now as well as how it and the preservation of cultural heritage should necessarily contribute toward the communities\u2019 own sustainable development. Similarly, during the holy month of Ramadan in 2022, Dakira partner Mimouna Association organized a community Iftar dialogue in the Mellah of Rabat, which brought together more than 100 people to discuss and explore Jewish-Muslim cultural commonalities and shared customs from the perspective of local youth.<\/span><\/p>\n Fostering intercultural values through outreach events<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n