Metodología de evaluación de ofertas

In addition to structural constraints, girls’ experiences back home were often limited by gender constraints. These constraints involved varying intersections of gender, religion, and ethnicity, or culture, more broadly. One major area of gender constraints concerns societal expectations which functioned to restrict what girls were able to do and where they could go. These restrictions often meant that girls were required to remain largely at home, performing a litany of domestic responsibilities and other gendered expectations. These gender expectations

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impacted their free time, often leaving little time for personal leisure. This is evident in Decontee’s description of a typical day back home, where chores started early in the morning and were required before being allowed to go to school:

I woke up early in the mornings, like [at] six . . . My school starts at 7:30 . . . but I have to go do house chores before I go to school or I wasn’t going to school . . . I go to school and school ends [at] probably 1 or 2 or so. [I] come home, do the chores . . . Like, wash dishes for sure, get some water [from the well], go to the market . . . [Then I would] sweep the house, clean [the] yard . . . [And then I would] study. (Decontee)

For some girls, such as Decontee, gender expectations around domestic chores impacted not only their free time, but potentially their education as well given that certain chores needed to be completed before they could go to school. For other girls, their domestic responsibilities could impact their education if they were too exhausted from doing chores to meet strict school rules, such as prompt attendance and wearing a uniform. As Sanura explained, the repercussions for not adhering to school rules (regardless of the reasons) meant ‘choosing’ between being beaten or missing classes to clean the school:

When you come late to class, they take the stick, [and] beat you up [or] you have to clean the whole school . . . I did that myself ‘cause I [was] late. [Also,] they have uniforms you [have to] wear. I remember one day, I forgot [to wear my uniform]. I came from school, I took my uniform [off] and then I put it in my room. I went to fetch water for my family, I came out [and] I was so tired, I fell asleep. Then, I got up in the morning, I thought, ‘Omigod, my uniform is dirty, [but] I don’t want to miss school today.’ So, I just put [on] my [regular] clothes and I went like [that] . . . [The] teacher [said there’s] ‘No excuse.’ [So he hit me] with a stick. They hit you five times [and] your hand becomes really red . . . Sometimes they say, ‘Choose your punishment. Do you want to clean [or get hit]?’ Then I was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to take the [hitting] punishment . . . [because cleaning is] going to take a long day. I have to go to class, just beat me. I don’t’ care’ . . . Most people do that . . . Some people who are really sick of the beating thing, they go, ‘I’m going to clean’ . . . So if you’re late [for school], you get a punishment, no excuse . . . [So there are] just hard rules. (Sanura)

Murungi was raised by her grandmother in Rwanda, who had taken care of all of the domestic responsibilities. When Murungi came to Uganda for two years to attend boarding school there, she was only then confronted with the expectations for girls to cook and clean. She commented

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that she did not have the expected proficiency in cooking, and was particularly frustrated with the difficulty of peeling a Ugandan fruit:

[Back home, in Rwanda,] girls [are expected to cook] once they get to know how to cook . . . [But my grandma] did everything for me . . . Girls [in Uganda] were [also] expected to know how to cook, which I didn’t know. And they were expected to peel this

[Ugandan fruit]. It’s really hard [to peel] without cutting any piece of it . . . So if I wanted to cook, I don’t want [people] to see how I’m peeling, so I have to lock myself inside and peel it . . . It was really frustrating . . . [Girls] are expected to know how to do it . . . They were expected to stay home . . . or, according to my neighbours, [because] most of the time I lived in school. But then whenever I come home, I see girls staying at home cooking and cleaning. (Murungi)

Rose voiced her indignation with the discrepancies in treatment and expectations between boys and girls that she perceived back home. These gender disparities meant restrictions for girls’ freedom to do and go where they wanted and suggested differential treatment for Rose and her brothers:

I fight with my mother, I told her, ‘Okay, if I was a boy, I can do everything I want easily’ . . . Because, in our country, girls should be at home and [should] do the [domestic] stuff and this kind of thing. And boys can go everywhere. My dad wants all of my brothers to do that too. (Rose)

Societal expectations for girls to stay at home were sometimes extreme, maintained by social surveillance and sanctioning, and could result in dire repercussions. Amira discussed the view held by some people back home, in the Middle East, that girls should never leave the house:

Some people back home . . . in my country, they’re just crazy. They just think that girls should not go outside. I thank God it’s not my family . . . Some people think like that . . . [that girls should] stay home, just doing home stuff . . . I don’t like [that]. Especially in my country, like people, when you do something, they just talk. Like, ‘Did you see what she did?’ or something like that. I hate this . . . And sometimes [girls] can throw

themselves out the window or something. They just get [to that point]. I just heard [about this happening]. And some girls [are] satisfied with [only staying inside]. They feel that’s a good way. They think we’re bad girls who go out. (Amira)

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Adding to restrictions around girls and women leaving the house, Amira further explained that many women back home do not work outside the home. She specifically commented on how she felt this was unfair – for men:

Most women over there [in Iraq], they don’t work . . . We think work is only for men; women don’t have to work . . . Sometimes I feel like it’s not fair . . . because [men] work and work and work. [It’s not fair] for the men . . . Women just sit and just talk to each other. And men work all the time and all the worry. This is unfair. (Amira)

Societal emphasis on women’s domestic responsibilities and roles, coupled with lacking educational opportunities, meant that ‘a lot’ of girls could not envision lives for themselves outside of the domestic sphere. Sanura explained how girls are not allowed to date, but that many do because they have negative experiences with school, which lead them to quit school, marry young, and become mothers:

In Africa, [our society] doesn’t want us [girls] to [have sex] at all . . . There, they say you’re not even allowed to have a boyfriend. Girls and boys just normally don’t do [that], but some of them do; they date secretly . . . Some people are doing it because they

already focused enough [on school] and they didn’t get what they want so they just go and get married. Some people get married at the age of fourteen . . . [or] fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen . . . [But,] mostly fourteen . . . There are a lot of people out there that say, ‘I don’t want to go to school.’ Most of the girls, they don’t go to school anymore; they just quit. [They think], ‘I want to be a mom. I don’t want to go to school, ‘cause even if I keep going every day, I learn nothing.’ [They can’t get a good] education [and there’s] bullying . . . [People] look at you, [and say], ‘You’re not smart.’ [There’s bullying by both] students [and teachers], because the teachers are really mean. (Sanura) A second major area of gender constraints concerns societal proscriptions for girls’ interactions with males. These constraints can limit leisure opportunities because they dictate with whom and how girls can interact. These gendered proscriptions for girls’ interactions with males also can compel strict monitoring of girls’ behaviour, and sometimes incur harsh

consequences when they are not followed. Rose discussed how, for her, being a Muslim girl means that she cannot share certain ‘nice’ attributes of herself in settings with boys, such as singing on stage in front of a (mixed gender) audience:

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I would never go and stand on a stage and sing in front of many people with my hijab. I won’t do that. Because, in our country and since you are Muslims, you don’t have to give your voice to every single boy to hear how you sing or how you change your voice and make it nice. Because they say that would let the boy chase you at the end. I won’t do that. (Rose)

Salima explained Afghanistan society’s ‘more strict’ treatment of girls and women, which meant that girls could not date, or even go somewhere with a guy, whereas guys could more freely interact with girls:

I am a woman, obviously, so there are things that women should do or can do or

whatever . . . [especially] back home in Afghanistan. It’s not my family [that says this], but the society is a little more strict on women than men . . . Like, if a man want[s] to go somewhere and then just have fun with friends, it’s not a big deal. But then, if a girl want[s] to go with a guy, then it’s a problem, not for the guy but for the girl. Because, as part of being Muslim, you’re not allowed to date. At least in Afghanistan, it’s part of the culture. It’s not the same in every country . . . I never thought of dating because I was pretty young when I was in Afghanistan. But, that is something [that] women can’t do in Afghanistan. (Salima)

Sanura discussed Kenyan society’s restrictions for girls and boys interacting, which included gender segregation in schools and not being allowed to date. Although these restrictions apply to both girls and boys, defying them, by dating for instance, carried a disproportionately harsher punishment for girls, which could even be fatal:

[In school], boys don’t stay with girls. In class, you don’t talk . . . There [are] girls in the same room as boys, but the middle [of the classroom] is empty. [It’s like] boys [are on] that side, girls [are on] that side . . . ‘Cause we’re not allowed [to date]. But [there are] people [that] want to, like girls they want to, [so] they date secretly. [But, if someone finds out], I know in other regions, they kill their daughters. Sometimes, some parents they just would do [that]. Sometimes they say no, it’s not necessary, [so they] don’t follow the region [rules] . . . [It’s really] depending on the parent . . . [But,] sometimes a lot of people [receive that] punishment. (Sanura)

Sanura further explained that sometimes girls who are caught in a relationship could avoid the death ‘punishment’ by marrying the man they are in a relationship with, even if this

‘relationship’ involves statutory rape, as she described in a situation which happened to a young friend of hers:

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I had this one friend who was fourteen and then she had this relationship and then she was pregnant. The next day, she had a baby, [and] I was like, ‘What?!’ She was fourteen and she got married. I was like, ‘Omigod.’ There was an old man who impregnated her. So he went to the girl’s parents and gave them money . . . He was rich. [He gave the money] and took the girl. (Sanura)

A third, and last, major area of gender constraints for girls back home are constraints around girls and physical activity, including sports. Physical activity often highlights, and even exaggerates, limiting societal views about girls’ bodies, their sexuality, and accompanying restrictions for clothing and movement. As Noora explained, “It’s not common [back home for girls to play sports] . . . like in teams, no. But if you play in the courtyard with your family, it’s okay . . . [But playing on a team] there, I didn’t hear those things for girls.” Hana explained that she was not allowed to play soccer back home in Ethiopia, despite her interest, because her grandfather, with whom she lived, held certain views (which she felt were representative of her culture) about Muslim girls playing active sports such as soccer:

Back home, I really wanted to play soccer . . . My grandpa wasn’t that religious [of a] person, [but] he still wants you to be like the [rest of the] family. [Like be] how his uncles’ daughters [are] like, [with] how they dress or how they act or where they go. So, if I wanted to go join the soccer team, or if I wanted to play soccer [in a] pro league, that’s not what a girl does. That’s not what you were supposed to do. [He] just [wanted me to] stay home and play with the other girls or whatever, [and not do] active sports. [So] I did not [play soccer because of] my grandpa. I didn’t want to push him too much. He started [objecting] just from how you dress when you play soccer. [He said,] ‘You’re not going to dress like that, you’re not going to wear shorts’ . . . and ‘That’s not what girls do.’ No, that’s too masculine, I guess . . . [He wanted me] to choose something that girls usually do . . . I think he was really worried about what the people would think if he [let me play soccer] . . . [because I’m] a Muslim woman. (Hana)

Murungi commented on her frustrations with the physical activity restrictions for girls she encountered when she came to live in Uganda for two years. As she learned from her schoolmates (after much confusion and bewilderment), these cultural restrictions involved notions of keeping girls’ hymens intact by forbidding any overt physical activity. As such, these

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restrictions on girls’ physical activity are directly connected to beliefs about (and attempts to control) girls’ sexuality:

In Uganda, ‘cause I lived there for two years, girls weren’t allowed to do certain things. They weren’t allowed to play in certain sports, like soccer . . . ‘Cause the girls [are] not strong enough like boys . . . And girls can’t bike . . . Same thing [with] climbing trees . . . [because they say they change your body] in certain ways. [So] I just couldn’t [do them, even though] I love doing all of those [things] . . . [So] I got really frustrated, especially [because] Uganda is a country that has many fruits. You see fruit in the trees, you can’t climb it [to] get your own fruit. You have a bike, you can’t bike it; you can’t ride it. (Murungi)

When I asked what would happen if someone saw a girl ride a bike or climb a tree, for instance, Murungi vividly explained the powerful social sanctions that would occur:

The reactions [would be that] people [are] going to get disappointed at you saying, ‘You’re spoiled. You’re that kind of girl who doesn’t listen’ . . . [And] they think you’re cursed or something . . . They treat you differently, like you’ve been cursed by

something. It’s like, ‘Come on, I just climbed the tree.’ [But] they [say], ‘Oh you’re never going to get married. You’re never going to do this’ . . . The look they give you is not really good . . . And also, the way they talk to you there, it’s like they feel they have power on you. They want to show what you did was really wrong. (Murungi)

The gender constraints that girls faced back home all impinged on their personal freedom, which greatly impacted their opportunities for leisure. Girls experienced gendered expectations that kept them at home, proscriptions for interactions with males, and restrictions on physical activities. These gender constraints limited their leisure opportunities by affecting their free time, options for leisure settings, and the kinds of leisure they could experience. Despite these

challenging gender constraints, girls found meaningful ways to resist limiting gender ideologies.