Molenbeek Sports Hall Naming Controversy: Champion’s Full Name Omitted

"There has already been a lack of transparency in the voting procedure. Amal Amjahid’s name came up. I therefore ask that we respect her first and last name so that the hall bears the name of Amal Amjahid," Ahmed El Khannouss (cdH) hammered. "For the Mohamed Ali hall, we gave the name Mohamed Ali and not just Mohamed. It’s as if we wanted to make a hall in tribute to François Mitterrand and we just gave the name hall François. The people voted for an athlete and not a first name," commented the elected official. To make himself heard, he tabled a motion at the next municipal council, reports La Capitale.

Rajae Maouane (Ecolo), municipal councilor in Molenbeek, agrees: "It’s a good thing to call the hall Amal Amjahid. But I don’t understand why limit it to the first name. This contributes to the invisibilization of women in public space," she criticized. "The original idea is good but the name of the sportswoman must be complete. I don’t understand why when it’s a woman, we only give the first name and when it’s a man we put the full name."

"Recently, we named a room at the House of Cultures and Social Cohesion after Nelson Mandela. We didn’t call this room Nelson," she added. "This is part of a political approach to feminize public space. At the regional level, Elke Van den Brandt and the Brussels government are going in this direction. The Leopold II tunnel will soon be renamed after a woman," specified the elected official.

"We have just learned about the draft motion. The debate will take place at the council. To recall, the hall name was the result of an exceptional citizen participation process. The choice of Amal was made from 5 proposals. We are satisfied with this result. Through this name choice, the people of Molenbeek pay tribute to an exceptional Molenbeek athlete and also give her a universal dimension by the fact that Amal means hope in Arabic," commented the cabinet of Mayor Catherine Moureaux.