PEOPLE OF PLACE DE LA BOURSE
Here is a brief look at some of the people in Brussels’ Place de la Bourse, the town square that has become a massive memorial to those who were killed or injured in Tuesday’s terrorist attacks. Willy Dinart Dinart ventured to the square on Wednesday night, one day after the attacks, not wanting to be alone. The hotel worker spent the night outside, in the glow of hundreds of burning candles, a large bag of tea lights at his side to replace candles that burned down. He had planned to spend the night Thursday, too. “I’ll stay until I feel better,” Dinart said. Elliot Bockstael The 18-year-old passes through Maelbeek station most days, on his way to class. He loves it because of the station’s quirky, iconic murals by Belgian artist Benoît van Innis, so he came to reproduce them in chalk on the sidewalk. “I thought the city would miss them, so I wanted to bring them back,” Bockstael said. Marian and Cécile Félix Living more than an hour away, the twins drove in to show the attacks had affected not just the city, but the whole country. For Marian, who plays basketball, it’s especially in tribute to two Belgian national basketball team players she knows who were badly injured in the attacks. One was Sebastien Bellin, a well-known athlete who played college basketball in the U.S. “I am scared for him, and I hope he can recover,” Marian Félix said. Nourhan Elbachiri and Houria Begdouri As Muslim women living in Brussels, the two teachers admit that both they and their students face discrimination. “It’s not always easy living here,” said Begdouri, “but we need to show that just because you are Muslim does not mean you are a terrorist.” Said Elbachiri: “We are all people first, before religion comes into it.” Mariam Jabrane With her schoolmates surrounding her, 12-year-old Jabrane is bubbly and smiley, but her face drops when thinking about the attacks. “For a few hours, I didn’t know if my family was OK.” Once she learned they were alright, her concerns shifted to wor- ries about the effect of the attacks on her as a Muslim. “People should not get confused. I am Muslim and I am so sad about what happened,” Jabrane said. Helena Navarrate She is Spanish, but the 18-year-old grew up in Belgium and has no doubt it’s home. “We have really felt this in Belgium and I felt it was important to come and share in the grief. The most important thing we want to do is show the world that we are doing OK, and we will get better,” Navarrate said.