Spanish Civil War Memory Project

Summary

Barrera was born in 1941 in Catalonia. He studied chemistry and history. He points out that his father, though an irascible and militant Catalan separatist, was forced into submission by fear of reprisals under the Franco dictatorship. Barrera lived through what he describes as the "represión negra" during the years 1939- 1959. The period was marked by food rationing, which forced his parents (with seven children) to buy groceries on the black market. He also saw health problems in others due to malnutrition. Work days generally lasted 10-11 hours. Grisly memories of hearing machine guns during executions, and seeing or hearing of cadavers taken out, also marked this period. He discusses the establishment in 1940 of the Front Nacional de Catalunya. By the 1960s the situation began to open up, with some exiles returning from Mexico bringing in books published by Spanish exiles abroad. He describes the formation of a political consciousness and the political activism of middle class university students during this period. By the 1970s there was a further breaking down of boundaries in the flow of ideas, with tourists bringing books, and occasional travel to France by Spaniards. In the post-Franco era, anti- imperialist political parties were incorporating Marxist ideas in their platforms. Other topics touched upon by Barrera include: the role of woman in the political struggle against fascism, the current fight for Catalonian independence, which he contextualizes as a struggle for democratic self determination against the old colonialism inherent in the Spansih state, and general commentary on current political and economic issues in Spain and Catalonia