WUNRN
MOROCCO - FIRST WOMAN TAXI DRIVER
Photos: Michela
Pandolfi - Text: Sara Borrillo
She is the first female driver behind the wheel of a grand taxi in Morocco. In Casablanca Fatima Bennadi has become an institution: with colleagues and friends greeting her at every crossroads or at the taxi rank, her white Mercedes is part of the urban landscape. She has been driving it for 20 years, since her husband lost his job, in 1991, and Fatima made up a new life as a taxi driver. Today, aged 66, she is a wife and a mother who spends her time driving her beloved taxicab and shopping at the local markets. She believes in equal rights for men and women. “I don’t like bearded men - she states, referring to Islamic fundamentalists - who think women should stay home doing nothing all day. We need to work in order to be free to do the things we like, such as going out and traveling, just like you do in Europe”.