CAMP BARCELONA DECLARES VICTORY

PLAZA CATALUNYA

On May 27th the Police in Barcelona cracked down on the 20,000 youth protesters in the Plaza Catalunya under the pretext of cleaning the square. There were 99 injuries which motivated outbursts of solidarity from throughout the Spanish State and the neighborhoods of Barcelona. In Madrid there came the chants of "Barcelona Is Not Alone" and the protest movement of youth has now spread to 150 Spanish cities and towns. More than 12,000 Catalans joined with the thousands who gathered at the statue of Columbus to successfully march back to retake the square.

Esther Rivas an eyewitness participant wrote that the camps and occupations are not ends in themselves. They have become a base of operations. There are organizing collectives for those who have been evicted to demand decent housing for all. It includes workers from Telefonica who are fighting the proposed 6,000 layoffs and student and University workers protesting cuts in higher education. They are building assemblies in their neighborhoods and increasing efforts to seek ties to workplaces in struggle. They are also organizing toward June 19th as a date for global mobilization which is being launched by Camp Barcelona.

It is interesting to note that while there was 24/7 coverage of Tahrir Square on CNN and MSBNC..there is a blackout of coverage of the youth and working class revolt in Spain.