Mari Carmen, housing crisis symbol, dies two weeks after forced eviction

Spanish activist María del Carmen Abascal, known in the media as “Mari Carmen,” passed away on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at the age of 87, at the Gregorio Marañón Hospital in Madrid. Her death came just two weeks after she was forcibly evicted from the apartment that had been her home for seven decades, a tragedy that evolved from the personal struggle of an elderly woman in a wheelchair into a national symbol of the fight against evictions and Spain’s severe housing crisis.

Mari Carmen had been hospitalized since her eviction on September 23. Shortly before her death, public pressure had secured a preliminary agreement that would have allowed her to return to her home with a new contract. However, her family and lawyer noted the bitterness of the outcome, stating that “the solution came too late,” as she passed away before achieving her only wish: returning to the room she had lived in since 1956.

The case began with a legal dispute over rent. After the eviction, thousands of people took to the streets of Madrid and other cities under the slogan “We are all Mari Carmen,” turning the mobility-impaired woman into the face of protests against housing costs and real estate speculation.

The crisis reached the heart of the political scene, triggering a parliamentary crisis and demands for early general elections. Following the announcement of her death, protesters outside Parliament held a minute of silence, chanting “Mari Carmen lives, the struggle continues,” while Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez offered his condolences to her family.

International media described her departure as the end of a woman and the beginning of a renewed symbol. El País described her as the woman who ignited the spark of the fight against forced evictions. Her final words to protesters summarize her entire struggle: “Fight, defend what is your right.”