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Rap battle: young Tunisians fight stigma with the arts
The Tunisian capital's working-class districts have suffered from decades of state neglect and poor services, and residents say the stigma attached to their neighbourhoods shuts them out of the job market.
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Mohamed Ali Ayari, a rapper from a down-at-heel Tunis district, listens to headphones at a recording studio in Douar Hicher on March 1, 2023. The Tunisian capital's working-class districts have suffered from decades of state neglect and poor services, and residents say the stigma attached to their neighbourhoods shuts them out of the job market.
(AFP /Fethi Belaid )
"We're sick of being seen as thugs," said Mohamed Ali Ayari, a rapper from a down-at-heel Tunis district, where jobless youth are finding a voice through music, cinema and photography.
The Tunisian capital's working-class districts have suffered from decades of state neglect and poor services, and residents say the stigma attached to their neighbourhoods shuts them out of the job market.
"This contempt and these prejudices really complicate our lives," said Ayari, a resident of the overcrowded Douar Hicher suburb.
The 23-year-old works as a security guard, but his dream is to become a famous rap artist.
"I want to come out into the light," he raps in a recent video clip, produced with the help of peace-building charity International Alert.
Ayari was among the winners of a recent competition by International Alert, asking young people from four neglected Tunis districts to express themselves through music, documentary or photography, focusing on the theme of violence.
"People... experience violence on a daily basis -- some practice it and others suffer it," said Houcem Ayari of International Alert. "We decided to channel that into cultural activities."
