“There was so much rage over Maricarmen’s murder, because it is murder, isn’t it? The eviction killed her, the housing business killed her, this government killed her.” Around 20,000 people marched through central Madrid on Thursday to honor 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal, whose eviction two weeks earlier ignited Spain’s housing movement. Abascal, who had lived in her rented apartment since 1956, died Wednesday in the hospital, where she had been treated since her September 23 eviction. Although an agreement was later reached for her to return home, she passed away before she could move back. Abascal’s eviction sparked widespread protests over housing rights, including a camp in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol. The backlash also cost Pedro Sanchez’s government key votes on new housing legislation, prompting it to call a snap election for next month.

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