Friday March 29th, 2024
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Egyptian Women Break Free

An ongoing photography project by Hossam Atef sees women in male-dominated scenarios, testing cultural norms and promoting equality.

Staff Writer

Ok, so the Mardi Gras isn't coming to Egypt just yet but Cairo's first "Freedom Carnival" is set to empower women and leave the mysogynists cowering in the corner. The ongoing photography project shows women, in series of situations considered unusual in conservative Egyptian society.

The project aims to open minds and test cultural norms by photographing women in scenarios including playing street football and playing backgammon in a backstreet ahwa.

Freedom Carnival photographer Hossam Atef told CairoScene: "What we're trying to say is that every woman has free will. Unfortunately we are a closed society which is stopping a lot of women from achieving freedom - we're trying to change that.""Women are treated in the worst way imaginable by people who think they right to control her, the way she acts and how she dresses. This culture of control is making their lives hell."

"We aim to change all of this by opening peoples' minds with this project." Check out the project by clicking here.