Antwerp to name square after «Milouda», icon of Moroccans' cultural integration

Borgerhout, a bustling neighborhood in Antwerp, will be honoring the memory of a woman who dedicated her life to the integration of the Moroccan community in Belgium. A plaza in the famous neighborhood will soon bear the name of Viera Sagers, or Milouda, as Moroccan migrants like to call her.

This recognition has already been announced by the Antwerp city council following a proposal by the district mayor of Borgerhout, Flemish national broadcaster VRT reported on Monday. The square is on Zendelingenstraat, a street in Borgerhout.

«Viera Sagers was a prominent figure in Borgerhout and is best known for her commitment to the first generation of guest workers in Borgerhout», Mariam El Osri, district mayor of Borgerhout, told VRT. «She played an important role in their social and cultural integration at the time», she added.

«Viera had a record store, 'Melodia,' on Turnhoutsebaan. The Dutch of the Moroccans was not so good at the time, so they changed it to Milouda. That is also a name that is used in their own language», exlained El Osri.

The district is now looking into when the square can be officially inaugurated.