The Gorrillas

Parking with the assistance of gorillas

The gorillas to which I refer are men who have come to Spain from north and south of the Sahara Desert. They are undocumented immigrants who are ineligible to be given work, if there was any work, because they have no papers. To obtain an income whole armies of these men takeover a street, and when the motorist approaches looking for a parking spot they signal where there is an empty space. They will guide you in, and if you are very kind to them they will look out for you so that should you overstay your time, when the parking warden comes around they will buy you an extenstion of time so that you avoid a ticket.

Obviously they expect you to reward them on your return. Most people give them a euro in the belief that if they don't these men will damage their cars. I have no proof but I think this is not likely to happen because the last thing they need is police attention.

I wish that people would not leave their villages in Africa to make the extremely dangerous crossing of the Sahara and the sea to come to Spain, where Spanish people are leaving because of a lack of opportunity. The immigrants get here and they have to sleep under bridges; they find their food in garbage bins and they struggle to survive. Along the way, who knows how many died or were taken advantage of by the unscrupulous?

Apparently, the system they use to bring in a little money does work, and it should be borne in mind that a part of what they earn is sent back to Africa to benefit their families. Intolerant people condemn them and call them gorillas and the police regularly round them up, fine them, or put them in jail, but they go right back to doing the same thing when they are released.


It's a tough life, but I think that what they are doing is far better than breaking into my house or mugging me in the street. I say, live, and please, let's do our little bit to let them, and their families back in Africa,  live.

Copyright (c) 2013  Eugene Carmichael