Massinissa Akandouch

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Massinissa Akandouch
ⵎⴰⵙⵙⵉⵏⵉⵙⵙⴰ
Massinissa Akandouch.jpg
Akandouch in 2020
Born
Massinissa n Dadi Akandouch Aouattah Bouyfruri

(2001-11-08) 8 November 2001 (age 19)
Al-Hoceima, Rif, Morocco
NationalityMorocco, Great Britain and Spain
Other namesMassinissa of the Rif
Occupation
  • Activist
  • Media personality
  • Socialite
Known forHirak Rif Movement and Individual and political action on climate change
Political partyIndependent (2018–present)
Parents
  • Abdelhak Akandouch (father)
  • Asmaa Aouattah (mother)
Relatives
Signature
Massinissa-signature.png

Massinissa Akandouch (Full name: Massinissa n Dadi Akandouch Aouattah Bouyfruri, Tamazight pronunciation: /mæsɪˈnɪsə/ and Neo-Tifinagh: ⵎⴰⵙⵙⵉⵏⵉⵙⵙⴰ also known as Massinissa or with the tribal name MSNSN; born 8 November 2001) is a Riffian media personality, socialite, human rights activist, climate activist and indigenous member of the Amazigh Tribes of the Rif. The activist is known for defending the freedom, rights, cultural and historical heritage of the Imazighen people of North Africa.[1][2][3][4]

Early life[]

Massinissa was born in Al-Hoceima, Rif, Morocco and later immigrated to Mataró, Catalonia, Spain where he grew up with his family. He is the son of famous Riffian singer-songwriter Abdelhak Akandouch, founder of the band  [ar],[5] and the Riffian author and activist  [es].[3] Akandouch started his journey as an activist as a child, joining conferences, protests and campaigns that his family organized to promote Amazigh identity, culture and language, feminism, social rights and the independence of Catalonia.[6][3]

Like his father, Massinissa loved arts, and as a child began acting, singing, and music classes. He has starred in various music and art shows in his hometown Mataró. Massinissa and the Akandouch–Aouattah family were featured on the Catalan national TV channel TV3, when Massinissa was only an early teenager, on the show Amb ulls de nen to document the family's lifestyle and tell Massinissa's story.[7]

He is of Riffian descent but due to his family, he holds Moroccan, British, and Spanish citizenship.

Activism[]

Family activism[]

Massinissa grew up in an activist family. His mother was a civil rights leader in the Rif region in the 80s and suffered repression and persecution from the Moroccan authorities. His father, also an activist, wrote and sang popular songs in Riffian, talking about the repression in the region and Riffian leaders like Abd el-Krim. His parents, experiences with racism, social discrimination, and immigrant background, caused activism to be a major part of Massinissa's life since he was born.[8]

Animal rights activism[]

At only 12 years old, Massinissa decided to go vegan after watching "The best speech you will ever hear" by animal rights activist Gary Yourofsky, and joined the movement to "defend animal rights and consumer transparency in the animal agriculture industry".

In 2018, when he was 17 years old,[3] he became the leader of the Meat the Victims movement in Europe, exposed dozens of allegedly inhumane and illegal conditions of animals at factory farms in Catalonia and publicly rescued hundreds of animals from those facilities. Due to his early age and public (social media) strategy of activism, he landed in countless articles, TV and radio shows, making it to magazine and newspaper covers in Spain.[9][10][11]

In late 2019, due to public backlash, media, and political attacks, Akandouch wasn't publicly seen doing any animal rights activism anymore and appeared to switch his focus in promoting his culture (Amazigh identity) and various other social causes.[12]

Controversy[]

Akandouch was involved in different controversies due to his activism, political positions, and confrontations with senior members of the Catalan political sphere. The Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food of the Government of Catalonia, Teresa Jordà, attacked multiple times Akandouch's activities and the Government of Catalonia created new laws to repress Massinissa and his fellow activists from taking further action.[13][14][15]

The , an important framework of farmers in Catalonia, also publicly criticized the activist and his organization, and together with other networks and private entities, allegedly investigated him, and accused him of being funded with "tens of thousands of euros" by the "vegan 'lobby'" to continue pushing the vegan agenda in public opinion and in the press.[16]

Climate activism[]

In 2019, Akandouch joined Fridays for Future's Climate Strike in Barcelona as an extension to his activism and joined the 2019 "International Rebellion" actions by Extinction Rebellion in London, Barcelona, and Madrid.

He was invited to the first in Barcelona organized by the Government of Catalonia and attended the COP25 Conference in Madrid organized by the United Nations (other figures like climate activist Greta Thunberg and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also attended the COP25 in Madrid).[17]

Filmography[]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "La bandera il·legal". Núvol.
  2. ^ ""Je suis prof", el nou repte de França". Diari de Barcelona. Diari de Barcelona.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Massin, el chaval de 17 años que aterra a los ganaderos catalanes". Crónica Global.
  4. ^ ""Entidades juveniles acercan la justicia global a los jóvenes "". La Vanguardia. Grupo Godó.
  5. ^ ""I think the desperation pushes us to create, to sing, to get the best out of us"". Fundación ACM. Fundación ACM.
  6. ^ "Massin Akandouch, activismo, desobediencia y 'likes' — Deriva". revistaderiva.com.
  7. ^ Escola. La vida social [School. Social life]. Amb ulls de nen (in Catalan). TV3. March 20, 2014.
  8. ^ "MASSIN AKANDOUCH, ACTIVISMO, DESOBEDIENCIA Y 'LIKES'". revistaderiva.com.
  9. ^ Benito, Mariam (September 15, 2019). "Terrorismo vegano: "Comer carne es fascista"". La Razón.
  10. ^ "Los 14 conejos 'liberados' de Gurb... y la moda de los turistas veganos que asaltan granjas en Cataluña". ELMUNDO. September 12, 2019.
  11. ^ "Asalto a las granjas". La Vanguardia. July 21, 2019.
  12. ^ "conoce el joven musulman animalista que tiene aterrorizados a los ganaderos españoles".
  13. ^ "Catalunya amenaza a los activistas que accedan a instalaciones de explotación animal". Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  14. ^ "Un grup d'activistes assalten una granja de conills de Gurb". ara.cat. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
  15. ^ "Jordà alerta que les entrades a les granges "posen en risc" el benestar animal i la bioseguretat | Osona.com". www.naciodigital.cat.
  16. ^ "Dossier diario de prensa y medios" (PDF).
  17. ^ "COP25: Greta Thunberg Arrives In Madrid". Forbes. Retrieved Dec 6, 2019.

External links[]

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