Before sunrise, 76-year-old Amelia Sánchez set out for Puerta del Sol to support the hundreds of young people camping there to protest Maricarmen’s eviction, a case that has put Spain’s housing crisis back in the spotlight. She came on her own, as a citizen, in her words, with "two ears, two eyes and common sense."
Amelia stood out at once, weaving through the camp with fruit in one hand and water in the other. She handed out bananas and mandarins, asking, "Do you want potassium? A bit of vitamin C?" The heat was tough, but her fruit and words lifted spirits. For many, getting fruit from Amelia felt like a badge of honor: it meant you belonged.
Official estimates put attendance at around 25,000, while organizers claimed up to 300,000 participants, making it one of the largest demonstrations on housing in recent years.
Amelia’s connection to Maricarmen runs deeper than age. "It’s impressive that it took an octogenarian to spark this," she said. Maricarmen’s struggle is just one of thousands, but what struck Amelia most was seeing young people back in the streets. "Since 15-M, I only heard the right-wingers shouting. I thought the youth were just playing PlayStation. Seeing them here gives me life," she said.
Her activism comes from her own story. Amelia remembers losing her youth to early motherhood at 22, when birth control was out of reach. She and her ex-husband squeezed into a tiny room with their kids, while the rest of their home became a shoe shop. "It’s hard to believe people are living like that again," she said. Her first job was at an American insurance company. Weekends off had to be won through protest. Later, she worked as a hospital orderly. She saw how people now accept mistreatment as normal: they wait a year for a doctor or watch housing turn into a privilege. "It makes my blood boil," she said.
Amelia did not slow down at Sol. She spent hours handing out supplies and picking up trash, joking, "Either I stop now or the ambulance will have to take me away." Still, she would not leave. "I need this, to see people not sitting at home, indifferent. If Maricarmen’s case is the excuse, so be it."
The protest at Puerta del Sol quickly grew into a tent camp. AFP and Euronews reported that activists set up about 100-150 tents and stayed overnight to increase pressure on authorities. The movement calls for a freeze on rents and a ban on evictions without alternative housing, alongside stronger tenant protections, as highlighted by Reuters and DW.
Her message to the young was blunt. "Now you have the strength. We, the older ones, are just here to help. I want to soak up the energy of the young, because you have the power. It would hurt to see this become just a passing moment. That would mean we’ve learned nothing."
As night fell, Amelia thought about what she would leave behind. She remembered a tombstone she once saw: "I’m leaving because I can’t stand you anymore." She prefers her own: "I fought until they got tired of me." She promised to return the next day.
The spark at Puerta del Sol is spreading. As reported earlier, Maricarmen’s eviction has set off a wave of protest and debate about housing rights in Spain. Old problems have returned in new forms. The fight is not over.
Amelia Sánchez’s work at Sol shows how movements grow beyond slogans. It reflects solidarity across generations and a continuing fight for dignity and rights.
