A-Infos (en) France, Monde Libertaire - Ideas and struggles: They were in the process of doing it (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

Self-Management in Spain (1936-1939) ---- Syllepse publishers had the 
excellent idea of combining two works under the title They Were Doing 
It: Self-Management in Spain (1936-1939): one by Frank Mintz, 
Self-Management in Revolutionary Spain, and the other by Luis Buendia 
Garcia and José Luis Carretero Miramar, The Self-Management Experience 
During the Spanish Civil War. This revolution, in the publishers' view, 
"tinged with the red and black of the ideals of libertarian 
communism[...]remains even today a virtually unique example in history." 
---- In the introduction, they make the observation: "Anarchism has been 
the breeding ground for almost all social unrest in recent Spanish 
history, to the point that all left-wing organizations and political 
parties have emerged from it." It is a powerful mass trade union 
movement, and in many provinces, it holds a majority. "The importance 
and grandeur of the Spanish anarchist movement inevitably raise the
question of why it developed so profoundly in Spain and not in other 
countries." The rivalry between Marxists and anarchists is well known. 
Engels would later level slander against the anti-authoritarians. But 
the anarchists possessed tools and a system of thought that resonated 
with Spanish society. After a brief historical overview, Frank Mintz 
organizes his analysis around three questions: Why collectivization? How 
(imposed by force, decided by local assemblies)? What were its original 
contributions and characteristics? With the work of Luis Buendia Garcia 
and José Luis Carretero Miramar, we have a scholarly compendium on this 
notion of self-management, combining reflection with a concrete, 
thorough presentation that delves into the organization of the system. 
The reader will appreciate the precision in the analysis of the 
functioning of both rural communities and the organization of 
businesses. We are confronted with the concrete realities, the 
difficulties, and the threat
of the front. It's always the same difficulty to lead a revolution under 
enemy fire.

The key role of the CNT

Understanding this revolution requires knowing the context of this 
society, distinguishing between the peasantry and the emergence of an 
industrial Spain. The CNT took root because it was open to all workers, 
regardless of political or religious affiliation. Its leaders were 
workers themselves. It advocated direct action, a single trade union, 
and federalism. It never limited itself to trade unionism; it addressed 
social issues, hosted literacy classes and Ferrer-type schools, and 
developed numerous newspapers and magazines. However, its policies and 
organization were a source of confusion. It was this same CNT that 
mobilized during the putsch and organized transportation, energy, 
communications, supplies, and entertainment in Catalonia. Its activities 
spread to other provinces, such as Aragon and the Levant. We see the 
process of establishing rural communities, taking into account the 
opposition of
fascists within the villages. Consider the repression suffered by the 
supporters of self-management. The informers were present.

How to organize?

The book also addresses very concrete questions such as the use of 
money, the place of those who refused collectivization, local democracy, 
education, the socialization or nationalization of businesses, 
competition between them, not forgetting the difficult question of equal 
pay in a society that still required financial incentives. The authors 
provide numerous testimonies and quotations. They demonstrate, as early 
as October 1936, the opposition of the institutional left to this 
self-management (law of October 7, 1936). The Communist Party defended 
the bourgeoisie and intended to eliminate the anarchists and the 
militants of the POUM. Confusion ensued, or rather, the conflicts 
between authoritarians and anti-authoritarians resurfaced. Nevertheless, 
this self-management, as recounted in this book, continues to raise 
fundamental questions that remain relevant today and constitutes a 
concrete basis for our reflection on a libertarian society.

* They were in the process of doing it, Self-management in Spain (1936-1939)
1 Frank Mintz, Self-management in revolutionary Spain
2 Luis Buendia Garcia and José Luis Carretero Miramar, The 
self-management experience during the Spanish Civil War
Ed. Syllepse, 2026

https://monde-libertaire.net/?articlen=9140
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S  N E W S  S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
Subscribe/Unsubscribe https://ainfos.ca/mailman/listinfo/a-infos-en
Archive: http://ainfos.ca/en