BadalonaDespite being born in Catalonia, Hamza Driouich is used to fighting to fight stereotypes in a society that too often looks at him with suspicion. This basketball coach of the lower categories of Youth, who has overcome different episodes of racism, explains his case as an example to understand how some people of Moroccan origin have experienced the World Cup. “We talk a lot about integration and how people see us when cultural or religious issues come up. People tell us we must be from here, but then most take it for granted that we had to cheer for Morocco during the matches of football. I don’t consider it racism, but society continues to label people based on the color of their skin or their origin. This bias reminds us that we are not the same as others,” he argues.
The good performance of Morocco, which reached the semi-finals, caused atypical situations. “At home we watch more basketball than football and we have always cheered for the Spanish national team. We did the same with football matches, where Morocco did not usually compete with the best. In this World Cup some of us had to rethink who to cheer for. I am not talking in no one’s name, but I have taken a position in favor of Morocco. Sometimes it is hard for us to know where we are from, because when we are in Catalonia we are made to feel like outsiders and when we are in Morocco, too. Something is being done wrong,” he explains.
One of the most beautiful stories of the World Cup has been the presence of the mothers of the Moroccan footballers. “In Morocco there is a very powerful cultural theme about the treatment that fathers and mothers should receive. For Muslims, paradise is hidden in the heel of the mother. The World Cup served to make it known and explain in the world the importance of fathers and mothers. In Islamic culture, for example, taking the elderly into a nursing home is very rare,” says Driouich.
The chakra of racism
From an early age, Hamza has experienced some racist episodes. On the day when the first stone of the Masnou pavilion was laid, for example, the police did not let him pass. Another day an innkeeper refused to sit on the terrace of his cafe. “Recently I haven’t experienced any racist episodes, but I continue to live with the idea of having to justify myself permanently. It’s like I have to endure constant pressure. When I enter a place, people look at me with suspicion,” says Driouich , who is the assistant coach of the Children’s Youth team. “As a basketball coach, I’ve never detected any awkward situations. No one has made me think I’m different. I guess the court is a place where I feel really empowered.”
Driouich, who studied economics at the University of Barcelona and is now preparing to become a secondary school teacher, leads a solidarity project that started a basketball school in a formerly very marginal neighborhood on the outskirts of Casablanca, Aïn Sebaa. “Last summer we went to Asilah, the town where I summer. El Joventut, the Catalan Federation (FCBQ, Masnou Basketball and some local business [la Pizzeria Squadra Pizza Lab] they helped us with equipment and balls. We spent fifteen days doing basketball and values training. There was a barracks area next to the basketball court and the activities were well received. Our goal is to be able to be there more regularly,” he explains.
