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OUT OF PLACE
What cultural minorities in Belgium have to say about Flemish and Walloons
Nicolas in the Morrocan quarter of Brussels
| Nicolas Landru (LEIPZIG). Early morning, the municipality of Molenbeek is slowly getting up. Halal butcheries, exotic fruit markets, groceries, tea or hairdressing salons are opening their ironed curtains.
Today a central part of the Belgian and European capital, this locality developed as a centre of heavy industry. Thus, for almost two centuries, it has been one of Brussels’ major immigration platforms. From Flanders, later on from Italy, Spain, Morocco or Turkey, nowadays from Kosovo, Pakistan or Central Africa, different waves of migrants came here to shape a cosmopolitan workers’ melting pot. The Moroccan community is still the most present and Lower Molenbeek holds the image of a “Little Morocco” in the minds of Brusselonians. “Here I feel exactly like in Morocco”, says Jalil, who has lived here for 30 years.
Multicultural food culture
To judge by appearances, neighbourhood and inhabitants don’t exactly look wealthy. Unemployment here reaches 30%, more than three times above the national average. According to Peter, a district social worker, Molenbeek and its communities heavily suffer from an image spread around by Belgian media, where they are often stigmatised with crime and delinquency. However, when asked about their living conditions in Belgium, few Molenbeekians of Moroccan background seem to be eager to complain. Whereas women generally refuse to answer this type of question, younger and older men say they have got a comfortable position within Belgian society. None of them is willing to point out racism. A discourse which is based on true feelings, or which aims at preventing further critics from mainstream society? In any case, according to all respondents, the Moroccan community is tightly knit and lives quite on its own.
| Fotos: Matteo de Simone