Censorship with violence, Censorship without violence (?)


Censorship in some countries is a reality. I lived all my teenager years in an African town called Lubango.

Let me say 'Wah leh leh poh h h h ...' (good morning) to the Muilas or MuMuilas, a people from the surrounding villages, that would come to town to barter or doing business. This culture is very proud of their values and culture. For an external observer, the main visible feature was the way they dressed or not, since they looked practically naked. However, women would use distinct hairdos and metal rings around their necks and lower legs to project their status (married or not) and their social hierarchy. Moreover, women would use tight belts around the breasts to stop them dangling, resulting in long flat breasts, a practical issue, and completely void of the erotic meanings and imagery we are used to.

I also witnessed the former colonial power using the police to beat the Muilas savagely to force them to dress up or cover the 'impudent parts' as many 'shocked people' would justify.

Other cultures (and individuals) of this world are the opposite of the Muilas.

The photos below show how some people in Iran (Choc, 26 Avril) seem to take the censorship and the impudent mind to the extreme. The Muilas still are an independent mind people, proud of their culture but still being despised and beaten by the new power. The Muilas exist now, and still resisting passively and thriving.