People evicted from Badalona’s B9 seek shelter under police pressure

The recent eviction of the former B9 secondary school in Badalona has left dozens of people, mostly African migrants, with nowhere to live. After two nights camped outside the building, those affected face constant police surveillance and a lack of alternatives offered by institutions.

Usumane, one of those evicted, is torn between trying to break padlocks to find shelter or seeking family help in France. He says that he tried to get into a boarded-up home, but police presence and intervention by neighbours prevented him from doing so. So far, neither the Town Council nor other bodies have offered him a place in a shelter, and social services have not given him an appointment since the eviction.

The Asociación de Vecinos del Remei confirms that several of those expelled have tried to force entry into other properties. According to neighbourhood sources, around ten people have managed to quietly occupy a building, where they spend the nights in secret to avoid further evictions.

In the area around the Fábrica de Cartón de Sant Adrià de Besòs, the police maintain a permanent patrol to prevent occupations. Mamadou, another person affected, says that attempts to open doors near B9 have failed and that they are still looking for places to take shelter.

While most remain near the former secondary school, some have moved to the beach at Litoral de Sant Adrià or to a nearby car park. Demba, also evicted, has chosen to sleep alone in the La Pau neighbourhood, regretting having lost all his money and facing sleeping on the street for the first time.

Many of those evicted still have some of their belongings and documents inside B9, but police surveillance prevents them from retrieving them. Usumane complains that he cannot get into his room to take out his passport and other important papers.