A happy time in the Happy Valley

Trip Start Jan 14, 2008

Trip End Ongoing

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Flag of United States Northampton, Massachusetts
Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Ah, Northampton. A place more culturally removed from Morocco I could not find if I tried. In Morocco, the dominant people are men. One the streets, in cafes, in shops, in businesses, everywhere you go you find men. Women stay home and mind the children in most places, and though women's rights have improved significantly in the past few years and many city women are becoming educated and independent, they still have a long way to go.

Not here.

Here, women are the ones in charge. Smith College, that bastion of female education, has ensured that this town is filled with women who can do anything. Men are obsolete. Women here paint their own houses and fix their own cars, run their own businesses, grow their own vegetables, write their own novels and screenplays, create their own calculus equations...the list goes on. In my three years at Smith College, I have always loved Northampton and its independent vibe. Now, returning from four months in a repressive male-dominated society, I think that Northampton is the most refreshing place on Earth.