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Abdellah Taïa Quotes
born 1973 Morocco
Abdellah Taïa (born 1973) is a Moroccan writer and filmmaker who writes in the French language and has been based in Paris since 1999. He has published nine novels, many of them heavily autobiographical.
Random Abdellah Taïa quote
4 quotes
Being gay means having a critical perspective, and criticizing everything. Like Jean Genet, I wanted my work to have that critical eye, and to take on the struggles of others. I wanted to be a powerful gay voice, a strong and political voice.
The idea was that we Moroccans are good citizens and good Muslims. We aren't permitted to talk about personal things, especially not out in the open. But for me writing is never about what's considered 'right,' it's about everything that's wrong.
What matters to me is how we see a woman who is considered by so many people as weak, illiterate, dominated — when in fact she was not dominated. She did not feel weak. Yes, it’s a world of poverty, but every step she takes, every action she does, has a bigger meaning.
The world is violent everywhere. I live in Paris — do you think it is calm? Racism, fascism are everywhere. People often assume violence exists only in the Global South, but that is a limited view. Of course that’s false. It is another prejudice, another limited way of thinking.