Breaking in Morocco: Opportunities and challenges for professionalization and gender equality in the run-up to the 2024 Olympic Games

Abstract

In Morocco, breaking’s formalization through governmental bodies already took off years ago and federations have played a crucial role in the organization, implementation and control of competitions. Formal institutions have shaped the local scenes and provided opportunities but also posed challenges for breakers on the ground. In this article, we explore formalization, gender inequalities and pathways for professionalization in Morocco in the run-up to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Utilizing ethnographic vignettes, interviews and survey data, we investigate how dancers navigate the top-down institutionalization of breaking and we give voice to their criticisms. We discuss how the formalization of breaking affects the Moroccan breaking scene, what critical opinions about this formalization exist and how formalization can be organized in culturally sustaining ways. In our investigation we paid particular attention to opportunities for professionalization and achieving gender equality for dancers from the Global South as well as the question of access to the western structure of the Olympics. We found that institutional formalization is perceived as disappointing and detrimental to the long-term and bottom-up development and self-organization, while nevertheless also opening up support and new opportunities for professionalization and achieving equality for b-girls.