Not in my name

Catalonia’s Muslim community stands firm against terrorism

Muslim communities demostrating against terrorism on La Rambla in Barcelona (by ACN)
Muslim communities demostrating against terrorism on La Rambla in Barcelona (by ACN) / Helle Kettner

Helle Kettner | Barcelona

August 21, 2017 07:58 PM

After the terrorist attacks in Barcelona and the coastal town Cambrils, in which 15 people have so far lost their lives, Catalan citizens have showed more unity and solidarity than ever. Catalan society has demonstrated that Barcelona, and Catalonia, is open to the world and is a land of peace, as Catalan president, Carles Puigdemont, expressed it hours after the terrorist attack that took place in the heart of Barcelona.

Some of the loudest voices in Catalonia condemning the attacks have come from the Muslim and Moroccan communities. On Saturday, just two days after terrorism struck Catalonia, Muslims in Barcelona clamored in favor of peace and against violence, fear and hate in a protest organized by the Catalan Islamic Cultural Center on the Rambla, where the van plowed into crowds of innocent people enjoying one of the city’s most emblematic streets.