Would you sell your daughter for the sake of poverty, tradition or both?

These beautiful young women in this video could’ve been seen in Sandton Mall or as the subject of a photo shoot on the Knysna Waterfront. At face value, i might have made the mistaken them as coo girls whose moms drive them via 4×4 to weekend shopping.

However, when they speak, it’s obvious that i’d have been wrong. They’re down to earth and friendly. For want of better terms, these lasses are homely or the the girl next door.

The difference between them and the stereotype i described is that they’re descendants of a gypsy clan called the Kalaidzhi… and they’re about to go to the market (not the mall) to be sold.

The prettier, the pricier. And, for their parents’ sake, worth much more as a virgin. Let’s hear all the parents chant with joy, “My daughter’s a virgin, born to be sold.”

Don’t mistake my words. They may seem to set a lurid scene and dance to sensationalism but all they really are is a precursor to this tasteful documentary by Broad Vice that seeks the humanity and truth in the annual “Bulgarian” bride sale. Serious kudos to presenter Milène Larsson whom i’m going to be googling after this blog. She was the duality of understanding whilst independently strong enough to state to the market brides that, “I’d never marry a guy I hadn’t tried to sleep with before.”

Yes, there’s tragedy within because all must be equal so as to pursue their own dreams and failures. But, as Larsson discovered, the reality isn’t as bad as the media made it out to be. There is change afoot. And, within, there seems to be family love that must ask ourselves, “How guilty are people when they live not in our opinion but the culture they know.”

[if the video jumps to the middle, point your cursor to the beginning]

Broadly is a website and digital video channel devoted to representing the multiplicity of women’s experiences. Through original reporting and documentary film, they provide a sustained focus on the issues that matter most to women. Us men need to pay attention too.

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