Sonic Sundays | Mariem Hassan
Mariem Hassan
Image | Carlos Fernández San Millán, via Wikimedia Commons
Mariem Hassan was a Sahrawi singer from the area known as Western Sahara, or the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), south of Morocco. This country was once a Spanish colony and is now claimed by Morocco (most countries recognize Western Sahara as an independent country while some, including the US, do not), and because of this complicated stalemate the country is still in the process of decolonization.
Mariem grew up in occupied Western Sahara singing with her mother and other women for religious and community celebrations. In the 1970s, the Sahrawi revolution began, when the people of Western Sahara, the Sahrawis, gained independence from Spain. Mariem Hassan joined the revolution, rejecting Spanish colonial oppression, and later Moroccan military encroachment, through songwriting and singing. Morocco’s annexation campaign drove Mariem and her family, along with thousands of others, away from their homeland, and they became refugees in Algeria.
Mariem Hassan sang about the struggles of her community in protest-oriented bands and in her solo albums, merging traditional Sahrawi music, Haul, with desert blues-style electric guitar. Her unforgettable voice and stage presence made her a popular and well-regarded figure internationally and she and the band El Uali played at numerous festivals. She eventually moved to Spain, where she recorded most of her music with the label Nubanegra. With a larger platform she was able to inform people about the political and social situation of the Sahrawis; her life’s work was to represent and support her community and culture for future generations, and especially to empower young women. Hassan’s music reflects what home means to her: “something that weighs on my mind…is the separation of my people…one part lives in refugee camps, and another under Moroccan occupation” (from Mariem Hassan: La Voz Del Sahara). She passed away in 2015 from bone cancer at age 58, but cemented her legacy for generations to come. Mariem Hassan’s music reminds us that her homeland is more than disputed territory, but people, stories, and spirit.
In “Haiyu,” she sings: “O Sarhrawi revolutionary people! We are the revolutionaries! And the Sahrawi free land is for Sahrawis!” “Arrabi al Arabe” and “Yasar Geidu” are also revolutionary songs. If you want to learn more about the current political situation in Western Sahara, check out this documentary from Democracy Now!.
“Haiyu”
”Arrabi al Arabe” (Arab Spring)
“Yasar Geidu”
Bonus Video: La Voz Del Sahara (2007)
