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Women in Algeria
In comparison to other Muslim majority countries, Algerian women overall have historically possessed more levels of freedom. Algerian women have seemed to be offered more leniency and have continuously proved to have an important voice in Algerian society. However, while they seem to receive leniency, they still suffer from an overall lack of protection of legislation or cultural norms.

Examples
Examples of leniency can be depicted through women only having to wear their veils inside cities, not throughout their daily life regardless of their location. Historically, oppression of Algerian women grew during the French imperial period in 1965. Culturally, French influence caused Algerian men to have their voices oppressed and and denied their pride, causing them to lash out in their domestic lives. However, this is not a direct representation of Algeria culture. The women's rights movement in Algeria continues to be a prevalent cultural movement to this day.

Europe and the Maghreb
In the 1960's, the European Economic Community (later becoming the European Union), developed an economic and sociopolitical relationship with the Maghreb states. The treaty of Rome demonstrated this by inviting Morocco and Tunisia to create an agreement between these countries and the EEC. This cemented Maghreb nations trading with Europe and the EEC to overall influence their growth. Trading between Europe and Maghreb gradually increased, leading to the creation of the Global Mediterranean Policy, in 1972. This policy lasted until 1992. However, there was little financial benefit that this policy created for both parties.

Complications
The growth of the EEC called for more restrictive measures for trading with Maghreb due to security concerns. European strife also contributed to lack of trading between regions, with the Berlin wall falling and overall a necessity to draw their focus away from Maghreb. Maghreb had to deal with their own internal conflicts as well, as the 2nd Gulf War in 1991 caused sociopolitical turmoil without the states. While trading still occurs between these two parties, the Global Mediterranean policy was viewed as an overall disappointment.

The Guichard Hypothesis
In the years 1976-1977, historian Pierre Guichard challenged the notion that Arab and Berber invasions after 711 AD did not have much demographic and sociopolitical impact. This concept was labeled the “Guichard hypothesis”. Examples of the invasions influence were primarily demonstrated through 3 variables. At the time, Arab clans practiced endogamy and this concept became a norm in Iberian society. The practice of endogamy overall prevented assimilation between Arab clans and the local civilians, as intermarriage did not happen. In addition to this, the concept of segmentary lineage called for increased cohesion in new settlements. This allowed the invaders to sustain themselves and grow prosperously in the newly acquired areas. Thirdly, the massive influx of Arab and Berber Muslims throughout the first two to three centuries following the invasions allowed for these ethnic groups to be the majority demographic in the Iberian Peninsula. These factors shaped the development of political and cultural practices in the peninsula for years.

Societal Hierarchy
The Beidane people comprise roughly 30 percent of the population, constituting them as the ethnic minority. While Haratines (Black Moors) make up roughly 40 percent of the population and constitute the ethnic majority. (The remaining 30 percent belong to what are called "Sub-Saharan Mauritanians" according to the CIA fact book entry on Mauritania

Within Mauritanian society, there remains minority of control of the country, with the Beidane (White Moors) controlling the national economy as well as a significant majority of the state including but not limited to the government, military, and the police force.

Since there is no ethnicity data on the Mauritanian census, the government has reported that the majority of the population (the 70% of Beidane and Haratine peoples) as Maure, which means "speaker of Hassaniya Arabic." The controversy surrounding this grouping however, is that while most Beidane peoples would associate themselves with the term, the majority of Haratines would distance themselves from the term as they consider themselves a separate ethnic group.

Slavery
During French colonial occupation of Mauritania, It was declared that France would help put an end to the continued use of slavery in 1905. The colonial power however, neglected to enforce such a decree and it was officially outlawed in 1981, making It the last nation in the world to make such a law. However, the nation has a long and extensive history of enslavement, with the Beidane (White Moor) peoples historically ruling over the black moor population.

Continued Slavery in the Modern Era
According to the Unrepresented Nations and People Organization (UNPO), Mauritania passed a 2007 law that criminalized the possession of slaves as well as making special provisions and rules for the payment of slaves via their masters. This law however, did not deter the owning and trading of slaves in Mauritania, and in an independent report from a United Nations independent expert, Gulnara Shahinian (the UN Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery), she states "There are all forms of slavery in Mauritania. There is child labour, domestic labour, child marriages and human trafficking." and she estimates that roughly 18 percent of Mauritania's current population of around 3.5 million people are enslaved as of 2009

While slavery has been abolished by law, many Mauritanians, specifically the Haratine minority, remain stuck in a "slave limbo" similar to indentured servitude, where they continue to be socio-economically dependent on the Beidane "masters" due to their position within the societal heircarchy.