Issue 44.17
As I mentioned in the last article, we became very aware that Catalan (a segment of Spain centered in Barcelona) was seeking independence. They want to become their own country. Flags showing this were everywhere. Since we returned home, the vote was held and a majority of people in that area voted to create a new country called Catalan. There are many similarities to our own choice to become independent from England but there are many things working against this process and it may fail. I believe however, that it would be the right thing in most ways for Spain to allow the Catalan region to “secede” and create a new nation.
Things working against this notion are that most countries outside Spain are refusing so far to acknowledge the new nation. The European Union has stated clearly that they will not have status as a country within that union which creates a number of problems economically and politically. At the same time, England is withdrawing from the European Union. Most other countries including the U.S. have stated they will not grant them status as a nation in our eyes and will not work with their government to establish relations, trade, etc. if they continue on this course. The Spanish Supreme Court has decided that it is illegal for them to secede. The government has dissolved the Catalan parliament (which is still meeting anyway) and has indicated they will consider those involved in the movement as criminals. Whether the military will get involved is still in question.
In their favor, this area of Spain is very productive and produces a significant amount of wealth and resources. The region is mostly made up of people with a different heritage, somewhat different language, culture and history than much of Spain. They generally feel they are already a separate group and that they are treated as inferior by the Spanish government even though they have many distinguished musicians, artists and thinkers that have emerged from this area. People like Picasso and Gaudy have museums dedicated to them and architecture in the area is fairly unique.
It is interesting to draw comparisons to our own revolution, our civil war and the current groups in the U.S. seeking to withdraw Alaska, Hawaii and even California from the union. Like us, when Spain was unified, the separate “states” were told they could leave if it didn’t work out. Like us, they now say “no, you can’t do that.” Like us, the number of people supporting independence there was not a vast majority. There were many “loyalists” in the fledgling United States during and even after the Revolutionary War. Like us, it will be difficult for the new nation if it actually becomes a reality, to become accepted and gain the same standing as other nations in Europe and in the world. Unlike us, they are right next to (or a part of) Spain and do not have the luxury of an ocean separating them from the military power of the “mother” country. Spain does not want to let their productivity go – much as England was very upset that the rich “new world” would not be under their control. Alaska, California and even Hawaii have significant natural and human resources and many of the powers that be do not want them to go their own way. Many people in many nations and many positions of power or authority dislike any hint of “independence” or that type of thinking, even among the citizens of existing nations. In our own country, those who stand up for freedom from what they view as federal tyranny are threatened, their lands confiscated and incarcerated. The Bundy family and some of those who have supported them are still in jail with no resolution in site. We need to look more carefully at how we, as a country, view the concepts of personal liberty and what we will willingly accept from our elected representatives and especially from the bureaucrats that make up most of the government and make most of the rules that affect our lives.
What is happening in Spain deserves our attention. As an outsider, I do not have the right to say one side or the other is “right”. I do believe that we should at least consider supporting the ongoing desire of the human heart to be free of oppression as it manifests itself in moves for independence or in legislation restoring more individual freedom and personal responsibility in our own country. It is all food for thought.
Lynn West is a thinker, a teacher and a patriot. You can reach him through email at forgingthefuture2021@gmail.com or through this newspaper. Liberty is a state of being which must be continually created. These articles can help all of us discover the ways we can contribute to that outcome.