Hundreds of thousands of people filled Barcelona's streets on Tuesday to protest Spanish police forces' militant response to the independence vote on Sunday. (Photo: @CatalansforYes/Twitter)
Oct 03, 2017
Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the streets of Catalonia on Tuesday to join a general strike and protest violence that left nearly 900 people injured this weekend, when Spain's national police forces tried to prevent Catalan residents from voting for secession.
\u201cTheirs violence.\nOur dignity.\nWe have no fear.\nhttps://t.co/fnpw2Zp5x6\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507029948
Ahead of Sunday's independence vote, which Madrid claims is unconstitutional, the government shipped additional forces to Catalonia. Spanish police not only seized ballot materials and closed polling stations but many also physically behaved violently toward the region's residents, which was captured in photos and videos that were widely shared online.
Despite Madrid's efforts to stymie the referendum, preliminary polling has shown voters overwhelmingly supported Catalan independence. Following the vote, Spain's national government is under mounting global pressure, including from the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, to resolve the regional independence dispute and investigate allegations of abuse by police.
Those concerns were echoed in Barcelona, the Catalan capitol, on Tuesday, where hundreds of thousands of people--"many draped in the blue, yellow, and red Estelada flag used by Catalan separatists"--stopped traffic and marched through the streets chanting "independence" and "the streets will always be ours," the Guardian reports.
\u201cTheirs violence.\nOur dignity.\nWe have no fear.\nhttps://t.co/fnpw2Zp5x6\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507029948
Protesters denounced Spanish police as "an occupying force," and urged them to leave Catalonia. "The protest came as several small labor unions and grassroots pro-independence groups urged workers throughout Catalonia to go on partial or full-day strikes," the Guardian reports. More than 40 unions and organizations called for the general strike.
Schools and universities as well as most small businesses shut down, responding to union calls to "vigorously condemn" police action. Barcelona metro stations "that are usually busy were deserted as services were cut back sharply," as was the city's Boqueria market.
Videos of Tuesday's protest spread rapidly on social media:
\u201cAll Barcelona streets full of people demanding the Spanish police and military police (guardia civil) to leave #Catalonia\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507032458
\u201cCatalan people marching peacefully against Spanish violence of @marianorajoy\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507026804
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the streets of Catalonia on Tuesday to join a general strike and protest violence that left nearly 900 people injured this weekend, when Spain's national police forces tried to prevent Catalan residents from voting for secession.
\u201cTheirs violence.\nOur dignity.\nWe have no fear.\nhttps://t.co/fnpw2Zp5x6\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507029948
Ahead of Sunday's independence vote, which Madrid claims is unconstitutional, the government shipped additional forces to Catalonia. Spanish police not only seized ballot materials and closed polling stations but many also physically behaved violently toward the region's residents, which was captured in photos and videos that were widely shared online.
Despite Madrid's efforts to stymie the referendum, preliminary polling has shown voters overwhelmingly supported Catalan independence. Following the vote, Spain's national government is under mounting global pressure, including from the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, to resolve the regional independence dispute and investigate allegations of abuse by police.
Those concerns were echoed in Barcelona, the Catalan capitol, on Tuesday, where hundreds of thousands of people--"many draped in the blue, yellow, and red Estelada flag used by Catalan separatists"--stopped traffic and marched through the streets chanting "independence" and "the streets will always be ours," the Guardian reports.
\u201cTheirs violence.\nOur dignity.\nWe have no fear.\nhttps://t.co/fnpw2Zp5x6\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507029948
Protesters denounced Spanish police as "an occupying force," and urged them to leave Catalonia. "The protest came as several small labor unions and grassroots pro-independence groups urged workers throughout Catalonia to go on partial or full-day strikes," the Guardian reports. More than 40 unions and organizations called for the general strike.
Schools and universities as well as most small businesses shut down, responding to union calls to "vigorously condemn" police action. Barcelona metro stations "that are usually busy were deserted as services were cut back sharply," as was the city's Boqueria market.
Videos of Tuesday's protest spread rapidly on social media:
\u201cAll Barcelona streets full of people demanding the Spanish police and military police (guardia civil) to leave #Catalonia\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507032458
\u201cCatalan people marching peacefully against Spanish violence of @marianorajoy\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507026804
Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the streets of Catalonia on Tuesday to join a general strike and protest violence that left nearly 900 people injured this weekend, when Spain's national police forces tried to prevent Catalan residents from voting for secession.
\u201cTheirs violence.\nOur dignity.\nWe have no fear.\nhttps://t.co/fnpw2Zp5x6\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507029948
Ahead of Sunday's independence vote, which Madrid claims is unconstitutional, the government shipped additional forces to Catalonia. Spanish police not only seized ballot materials and closed polling stations but many also physically behaved violently toward the region's residents, which was captured in photos and videos that were widely shared online.
Despite Madrid's efforts to stymie the referendum, preliminary polling has shown voters overwhelmingly supported Catalan independence. Following the vote, Spain's national government is under mounting global pressure, including from the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, to resolve the regional independence dispute and investigate allegations of abuse by police.
Those concerns were echoed in Barcelona, the Catalan capitol, on Tuesday, where hundreds of thousands of people--"many draped in the blue, yellow, and red Estelada flag used by Catalan separatists"--stopped traffic and marched through the streets chanting "independence" and "the streets will always be ours," the Guardian reports.
\u201cTheirs violence.\nOur dignity.\nWe have no fear.\nhttps://t.co/fnpw2Zp5x6\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507029948
Protesters denounced Spanish police as "an occupying force," and urged them to leave Catalonia. "The protest came as several small labor unions and grassroots pro-independence groups urged workers throughout Catalonia to go on partial or full-day strikes," the Guardian reports. More than 40 unions and organizations called for the general strike.
Schools and universities as well as most small businesses shut down, responding to union calls to "vigorously condemn" police action. Barcelona metro stations "that are usually busy were deserted as services were cut back sharply," as was the city's Boqueria market.
Videos of Tuesday's protest spread rapidly on social media:
\u201cAll Barcelona streets full of people demanding the Spanish police and military police (guardia civil) to leave #Catalonia\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507032458
\u201cCatalan people marching peacefully against Spanish violence of @marianorajoy\u201d— Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97 (@Help Catalonia \ud83c\udf97) 1507026804
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.