Following the tragic passing of Nora, a female Raja club supporter during their recent match against Al-Ahly in Casablanca, sadness and regret dominated the deceased’s funeral this Sunday, as Moroccans collectively mourn this untimely, “avoidable” death.
Dozens of citizens, including the young woman’s neighbors, relatives, acquaintances and Raja fans flocked to her home in the city of Mohammedia in order to offer their condolences, and accompany her body to its last resting place, in the absence of Raja Club officials, who offered condolences via Facebook.
The victim’s relatives told Hespress reporters present at the funeral that Nora’s body was “covered in bruises.”
Various areas of Nora’s body had injuries seemingly caused by kicks, due to the stampede at the entrances to the Mohammed V compound.
Although the family has not yet received an autopsy report, everyone Hespress AR has spoken to confirmed that the death was caused by the stampede and chaos that ensued yesterday.
Mehdi El Alami, one of the victim’s relatives, confirmed in a statement to Hespress AR that “although her features were recognisable, bruises covered the body from head to toe.”
Emerging discourse
The tragic death was met with ample discourse on social media, as citizens attempt to grapple with the tragedy.
On Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, people are demanding answers while others have started a new conversation about “why women shouldn’t be in stadiums.”
As many Moroccans voiced their grief on social media after learning about the tragic death, for which no official cause has yet to be given, authorities have initiated an investigation under the direction of the Public Prosecution to determine the circumstances and specifics of the incident.
Many fans present at the scene confirm that Nora died as a result of the stampede at the stadium entrance.
Many Moroccans used social media to call for increased security at such events in order to prevent further tragic accidents from occurring as a result of numerous videos showing Raja fans storming the Mohamed V stadium and shoving each other aggressively to enter the venue going viral.
However, such tragedies do not escape the aggressive misogyny that ravages social media when the victim is a woman.
A group of religious Moroccans living abroad have argued that this death is “the best argument from t which women should never be at football stadiums.”
As the country mourns the death of the 29-year-old girl, MREs on Twitter questioned why Nora was at the stadium in the first place, blaming her death on her “brothers and father” for not “protecting” her as “Muslim men,” and for not forbidding her from going to a crowded area “filled with men.”
Outside the circle of “appalled” fundamentalists online, some Moroccans on social media blamed the event’s hosting body, Casa Events, for the poor organization that resulted in such tragedy, as well as a lack of security personnel and raging crowds that continued to cause chaos.
According to one of Nora’s closest friends, the Raja enthusiast always went to games to support her favorite team.
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