Vol. XXVI, No. 3 September 2009 “...and that government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” ABRAHAM LINCOLN
FOUNDED BY THE VETERANS OF THE ABRAHAM LINCOLN BRIGADE
Vets Get Spanish Citizenship New Plaque Coming to New York Watt Award Winners
Carlos Blanco, On the Spanish Exile of 1939. Bay Area and NYC Reunions Pay Tribute to Vets’ Refugee Work
Teachings In titutes in Tampa and NYC! photograph of Carlos Blancl by Richard Bermack AB L A’s Teaching Institutes: A+! ALBA’s Teaching Institutes, which are The feedback from teachers, in reach, we bring our lessons to more designed to bring a Spanish Civil War all cases, is exceptionally positive. In young people. curriculum to high school students Tampa, we received A+ from every Based on our success, we expect around the country, have passed their teacher in response to every evalua- to expand the Institutes around the second year with flying colors. tion question! They have already made country in the coming year. We are In northern California, Tampa, unit and lesson plans that will go into planning briefer “development days” Florida, and New York City, selected curricula as soon as schools open in to greatly increase the number of teachers voiced their gratitude for the September. teachers we introduce to our curricula. opportunity to learn about the ALBA The implications of this program’s We are also planning to collaborate archives and how they can be used in success are immense. with teachers in publishing their les- high school classrooms—and then put Here’s why: We think it’s impor- sons in professional journals to reach their words into action by producing tant for young people to know about even more teachers. By any standard, unit and lesson plans to ensure that the Spanish Civil War because a this is an amazing opportunity! their learning experience would have new generation of citizens needs to Please help us promote the an immediate impact on their own know just how precarious an elected Institutes by using the enclosed enve- students starting in September. democratic government can be. They lope to make a contribution. This is an amazing achievement, need to know why it’s important for Cheers to all! though our work has just begun. all citizens to remain active and vigi- The Editors In California, ALBA collaborated lant, with a burning respect for our with the Alameda County Office of progressive democratic principles Education to produce two Saturday and traditions. They need to under- teaching seminars with 16 selected stand why U.S. intervention overseas teachers, focusing on key issues of needs to be selective and focused on The Volunteer the Spanish Civil War and exploring protecting democratic peoples, not founded by the how they can be taught in high school authoritarian regimes. They need Veterans of the classrooms. Among topics considered to understand that the defense of Abraham Lincoln Brigade were the reasons why U.S. citizens democracy requires both activism and an ALBA publication volunteered to enlist in a foreign courage. These are essential principles 799 Broadway, Suite 341 war to save democracy in Spain, the for a democratic future. New York, NY 10003 social composition of the International The teachers in our Institutes (212) 674-5398 Brigades, and how this aspect of U.S. agree. After immersing them in the Editorial Board history interfaces with world history history, literature, art, and music of the Peter N. Carroll • Gina Herrmann courses. Spanish Civil War, we listened to their Fraser Ottanelli ALBA then opened its first suggestions about how best to reach Book Review Editor Institute at the University of South their students. In turn, we showed Shirley Mangini Florida in Tampa, where ALBA’s team, them how our unique archives can be Art Director-Graphic Designer led by Fraser Ottanelli, and 18 teachers integrated into their curricula for the Richard Bermack used electronically scanned archival coming year and shared the thrill of material to explore a series of related using original documents for research Editorial Assistance Nancy Van Zwalenburg subjects (see page 3). Two weeks later, and teaching. We also promised to James Fernandez’s group offered the provide additional support through- Submission of Manuscripts second annual New York Institute to out the year. Please send manuscripts by E-mail or on disk. E-mail: [email protected] 18 teachers from six local high schools, No surprise: many of our teachers each represented by a teacher of social are already using our material in their studies, Spanish, and art (see page 4). classes. And with every teacher we U.S. Vets Get Spanish Citizenship ith the new Spanish law for Kailin was responsible for the recovery of historical organizing the construction of the Wmemory passed in 2008, monument honoring the Lincoln allowing volunteers of the International Brigade in Madison, the second in Brigades to apply for full Spanish citi- the U.S. He and the Madison Friends zenship without relinquishing their of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade also existing national status, two veterans of raised seed money for the monu- the Abraham Lincoln Brigade success- ment to the Brigadas Internacionales fully completed the process of that now stands in Marça, Priorat, application and approval and now hold Catalunya. The site is near the grave naturalized Spanish citizenship. of Kailin’s friend, John Cookson, who On April 6, 2009, Clarence Kailin, Spanish Consul Carlos Robles (left) with John was killed during the war. Hovan. Photo by Francisco Fernandez de Alba. 95, of Madison, Wisconsin, became the Kailin is widely known as a first veteran of the Lincoln Brigade to He remembers “the warmth of the one-man progressive institution in become a full citizen of Spain. His new Spanish people in spite of the Wisconsin, frequently cited at pubic Spanish/E.U. passport and Spanish suffering.” events for leading battles for labor, birth certificate read “Clarence Kailin Both Kailin and Hovan have human rights, social benefits, and civil Schwid,” following the Spanish remained lifelong activists. Continued on page 10 custom by using his mother Stella’s maiden name. In July, John Hovan, 93, a resi- dent of Providence, Rhode Island, New York Monument became the second vet to gain Spanish citizenship. ore U.S. volunteers in the the history of social activism in New “It was a difficult moment in the Spanish Civil War came from York, the museum will install a per- world and they risked their lives,” MNew York City than from manent plaque honoring the men and said Spain’s consul general in Boston, anywhere else. Nearly all Brigadistas women who departed from the city Carlos Robles, who traveled to Hovan’s sailed for Spain from the west side to fight against fascism and to save home with the official papers. “We wharves. Manhattan served as head- democracy in the Spanish Republic. respect that and would like to honor quarters for almost all home-front The exact design of the plaque, that in a small way.” support groups, as well as for the which will be part of the permanent Hovan worked with unemploy- national Veterans of the Abraham gallery, is still in development as The ment rights groups and the American Lincoln Brigade. Volunteer goes to press. League Against War and Fascism At last, New York City will before departing for Spain. He had install a memorial plaque to the U.S. left school at age 15 to work in his volunteers, thanks to an agreement IN HONOR OF THE MEN AND reached this spring between the father’s shoe repair shop during the WOMEN WHO, AS VOLUNTEERS Great Depression, but he lost that job Museum of the City of New York, the IN THE ABRAHAM LINCOLN when his father couldn’t get work. Puffin Foundation, Ltd., and ALBA. BRIGADE, SAILED FROM NEW “I saw the war clouds hovering Perry Rosenstein, president of the YORK TO STAND BESIDE THE over Europe,” Hovan said. “I felt it New Jersey-based Puffin Foundation, SPANISH REPUBLICANS AND was very important that fascism be announced the project at the annual stopped.” reunion meeting in May. FIGHT FASCISM IN THE SPANISH “I remember many wonderful As part of a unique endowment CIVIL WAR (1936-1939) people [in Spain],” Hovan told a gift to create and support a permanent reporter from the Providence Journal. gallery at the museum dedicated to
September 2009 THE VOLUNTEER 1 ALBA Plaque in Madrid By Soledad Fox
arking the 70th anniversary of the exile of Spanish MRepublicans, the Asociación de Descendientes del Exilio Español held events on May 6-7, highlighted by an “Homage to the International Brigades, Russian Volunteers, and Spaniards who Died Defending Europe’s Liberty,” at the Fuencarral Cemetery in Madrid. Spain’s Ministry of Defense unveiled a new monument These images will always be engraved Battalion and the Abraham Lincoln to honor the Spaniards who fought on our national memory.” Battalion. I unveiled the plaque with against fascism in World War II. The The large audience included British Ambassador Denise Holt, and event also featured various official Spanish survivors of Mauthausen, Jim Jump spoke on behalf of the British speakers. Dachau, and Buchenwald; diplomatic Battalion. Then I said a few words One of the most moving speeches officials from Germany, Russia, Serbia, about ALBA’s history and current activ- was written by Jean-Marie Bockel, Ukraine, and the United States; and ities and acknowledged the presence of France’s Secretary of State for Defense, members of the press. They witnessed Thomas Genton, Counselor for Public and was read to the audience by a floral tribute offered at the Spanish Affairs at the United States Embassy Bruno Delaye, the French Ambassador Monument. The crowd then moved in Spain. Amaya Ruiz Ibárruri, the to Spain. In Bockel’s words, “France to the Monument for the Russian daughter of la Pasionaria (Dolores has not forgotten the glorious Spanish Volunteers for a moment of silence. Ibárruri), gave an impassioned closing fighters who entered Paris in 1944 Events at the cemetery culminated speech evoking her mother’s farewell astride tanks with names such as with the dedication of the plaque address to the International Brigades in Guernica, Madrid, or Don Quijote. … donated by supporters of the British 1938 in Barcelona. The plaque dedication was Dear Editor, mentioned in two articles in Spain’s Justin Byrne’s excellent article in your March 2009 issue reminds us of how leading newspaper, El País, that ran torturous—yet critical—the journey to re-examine a nation’s painful Fascist with the headlines “Madrid Pays past can be. His “History Wars in Spain” shows us the Spanish people—some 70 Tribute to Anti-Fascist Fighters” and years after the Civil War and the start of dictator Franco’s reign of terror—have “The United States Joins the Homage the courage to confront an ugly and reactionary past. Even more relevant to to the International Brigades.” our own situation in the U.S. today, the American people have the opportunity The anniversary events also and the duty to remind the Obama Administration that blindly “moving for- included a colloquium in which ward” without an objective review of a shameful past is not an option. We must Spaniards who fought in World War II strongly demand and insist that the nation must fully investigate the crimes and survived Nazi camps spoke about committed in the eight long years of torture and imperial wars, and to make their experiences and an homage to those responsible for such heinous atrocities fully accountable to both the U.S. the deportees, both at the Universidad Constitution and international law. Thank you for highlighting the Spanish exam- Complutense. ple of how a responsible nation can begin to heal its wounded past. Perhaps you can send each of our 535 Congressional reps a copy of the apropos article. ALBA board member Soledad Fox Peace & Solidarity, represented the American donors of the Danny Li (MidPac Peace Activist) new monument in Madrid.
2 THE VOLUNTEER September 2009 Tampa Teachers Respond to USF Workshop with Important Lesson Plans
By Robert Alicea Photos by Jeannette Ferrary
LBA’s five-day workshop in Spanish Civil War, in particular, the the rebellion against the Republic dur- Tampa, Florida, in mid-June involvement of Americans, the first ing the 1930s. Asparked local high school four days focused on constructing On the fifth day, our teachers social science teachers to recognize the schema necessary for preparation of entered a computer lab confident and vitality of Spanish Civil War history professional lesson plans. The teach- enthusiastic. They crafted an array for their classes in the upcoming ers unanimously manifested a strong of extraordinary lessons. The follow- school year. Co-sponsored with the appetite for just such a content-laden ing examples are indicative of their History Department of the University agenda. The program called for a collective contribution. An American of South Florida and members of the variety of activities, including large government teacher created a three- School of Education, the program and small group discussions about day unit plan on “Motivations for aroused widespread interest among assigned readings, individual immer- Political Activism,” based on let- teachers who previously knew little sion in primary documents provided ters from ALBA’s collection. “Why about the Spanish conflict and cer- by ALBA, and a field trip to the Centro would United States citizens fight tainly had not devoted classroom time Asturiano in Ybor City for roundtable in this war?” is a documents-based to the issues the war raised. discussions with citizens who actually question central to a five-day unit Preliminary reading assignments participated in Tampa’s response to Continued on page 4 were mailed to 18 selected attendees three weeks prior to the event. By the time Peter Carroll, Fraser Ottanelli, Sherman Dorn and I welcomed them to the opening session, they were pre- pared in modest measure to discuss a story to which most admitted of only a cursory prior awareness. Since our objective was the trans- fer of content knowledge about the
Robert Alicea is a retired social science and language arts teacher and currently works as an adjunct instructor of U.S. history at the University of South Florida.
September 2009 THE VOLUNTEER 3 Teaching Institute in NY By James Fernández hy did Hitler and Mussolini “I am left inspired and overwhelmed, motivated and eager come to the aid of Franco? to go back to my classroom and share this very touching and WHow was the bombing of moving experience.” Guernica perceived and talked about before Picasso’s masterpiece? What photographs, with guidance from as Director of the Institute. Their role did art and literature play in the Professor Robert Cohen (Chair, Dept. ultimate goals: to increase teachers’ worldwide mobilizations in support of of Teaching and Learning, NYU’s understanding of the Spanish Civil Spain’s Second Republic? Steinhardt), Gail Malmgreen (Head War and to find ways to incorporate What were the motivations of Archivist, Tamiment), Michael Nash the war and the resources of the the men and women who joined the (Director of Tamiment), Michael Stoll Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives Lincoln Brigade? Why were there so (PhD candidate, Steinhardt), Juan into their high school curricula. many creative people among their Salas (PhD candidate, Tisch School of Each participant developed a les- son plan or curricular unit based on the Institute experience. Throughout “This was an amazing seminar that was a perfect blend of the summer and during the upcoming historical context and classroom application…” academic year, ALBA, in collaboration with Steinhardt, will work with the ranks? How did these American volun- the Arts), Peter N. Carroll (ALBA), and teachers to help them present their les- teers interact with the Spanish people? James D. Fernández (Chair, Spanish sons in their regular classes. These are just some of the ques- and Portuguese, at NYU), who served tions pondered in depth by the 18 New York City public high school teachers who participated in the sec- Tampa Continued from page 3 ond summer Teaching Institute at NYU. Six schools were represented, each by a teacher of art, history and Spanish. This group of educa- tors explored ALBA’s collections of manuscripts, posters, postcards and
Steinhardt’s Director of Field Projects, Lee Frissell, coordinated the outreach to the public in an advanced placement U.S. his- and possibilities for action in the schools, which yielded a tory course. Another week-long summer of 1936. The current issue wonderfully diverse and dynamic unit involves tying an analysis of regarding excavations of “Franco’s group of teachers from these Guernica to a lab assignment on Graves” is the topic of a week-long New York City high schools: ALBA’s website to forge an under- unit for an anthropology class. •Midwood High School standing of “The Rise of Fascism and The tangible success of this work- •Grover Cleveland High School the Spanish Civil War.” An American shop is augmented by the sharing of •Fashion Institute High School history teacher wrote a short skit these innovative lessons with col- •Brooklyn School for for Readers Theatre, "Meeting of the leagues on the district’s website. The Collaborative Studies Comité del Frente Popular," with nine expected result: more teachers, more •Clara Barton High School speaking parts in which Tampa men students. •Secondary School for Research and women discuss responsibilities
4 THE VOLUNTEER September 2009 Watt Prizes Announced
By Sebastiaan Faber Bureau: American Medical Volunteers renewal. This magazine seems to LBA’s George Watt Memorial in the Spanish Civil War and the have acted as a conscious counter- Essay Prize is awarded annu- Politics of Humanitarianism.” point to Ireland’s prevailing moral Aally to a graduate and an Both winners receive a prize of conservatism, which was manifest undergraduate student who has writ- $500. Their essays are available in full in literary censorship, clerical and ten an outstanding essay or thesis on the ALBA website, at
September 2009 THE VOLUNTEER 5 Bay Area and NYC Reunions Pay Tribute to Vets’ Refugee Work Hundreds Gather for First-Hand Stories and Preview of Capa’s Suitcase
Sebastiaan Faber presents a slide show featuring the Mexican Suitcase images at the the Bay Area reunion. Photos by Richard Bermack.
motions ran high in New York and San Francisco on May 3 Eand 31, where ALBA’s annual reunions attracted a combined audi- ence of almost 500. Both programs focused on the hardships endured by the hundreds of thousands of Spanish people who were forced to flee their homeland during and after the Civil War and the important role played by the vets and other sympathizers of the Republic in providing refugee relief, helping to create the basis for refugee aid as we know it today. Two Spanish refugees, Angela Giral and Carlos Blanco, told their gripping personal stories of suffering, 6 THE VOLUNTEER September 2009 Bay Area and NYC Reunions Pay Tribute to Vets’ Refugee Work Hundreds Gather for First-Hand Stories and Preview of Capa’s Suitcase
survival, and ultimate success in Mexican and American exile. Lincoln vet Matti Mattson addressed the New York gathering; Hilda Roberts and Nate Thornton attended the event at the Delancey Street Screening Room in San Francisco. Bruce Barthol and his ensemble filled the second half of both programs with songs from the Civil War. ALBA Board Chair Peter Carroll pointed out that the past year had been both exhilarating and devastat- ing. In March 2008, ALBA inaugurated Bonnie Weiss (left) and Sabina Ubell, members of the Bay Area Paul Robeson the beautiful national monument in Centennial Committee. San Francisco and finalized negotia- exodus from Spain, including fragments Capa, Taro and Seymour, Faber tions for a permanent commemorative from two films and more than a dozen explained, had much in common with plaque to the Lincoln Brigade in the refugee images from the “Mexican the International Brigadiers. In their Museum of the City of New York. In Suitcase,” a recently recovered cache of own way, they were all “border cross- the past two summers we initiated a more than 4,000 Spanish Civil War pho- ers”: displaced, stateless series of tremendously successful and tographs taken by Robert Capa, Gerda internationalists who refused to dis- effective Teachers Institutes in New Taro, and David “Chim” Seymour. tinguish between reporting and York, Tampa, and the Bay Area. On the As “concerned photographers,” solidarity work, or between politics other hand, we lost the largest propor- Faber explained, Capa, Taro, and and humanitarianism. “They were the tion of vets since ALBA’s founding and Seymour were interested not only embodiment of international solidar- are facing financial challenges during in the battlefield, but also in the ity, of the fact that loyalty, courage, the current recession. humanitarian consequences of the and sacrifice could be meaningful—in At both reunions, ALBA’s war, and their photos did much to fact, were really only meaningful—if Sebastiaan Faber presented scores of raise awareness of the Spaniards’ suf- they went beyond nationalism.” rare images of the massive Republican fering around the world. “We are so used now to refugee crises,” Faber said, “that it is hard to imagine the sheer shock caused worldwide by the massive Spanish Republican exodus. Life, Picture Post, and the newsreels revealed half a million men, women, and children—professors and politi- cians, officers and soldiers, toddlers, housewives, and the elderly—being strafed by German fighters, crossing the Pyrenees, freezing in the snow, starving in camps.” Jeanne Houck and John Sayles. Photo by Lenore Veltfort Jeannette Ferrary. September 2009 THE VOLUNTEER 7 On the Spanish Exile of 1939: Remarks at the S.F. Reunion By Carlos Blanco Aguinaga
etween the fall of 1937, when Franco’s troops occupied the BBasque Country, and February/ March 1939, when they occupied the Mediterranean coast and, finally, Madrid, over 500,000 people left Spain. Some ended up in the Soviet Union and a few in England, but most of us ended up in France, while many of those who had been defending Madrid managed almost miraculously to reach the North African coast from Alicante. Of the 500,000 refugees, about one third ended up going back to Spain, hoping for the best. But Franco was merciless, and a large number of Carlos Blanco (left) speaking with fellow Spanish exile Ramon Sender at SF reunion. those who went back, as well as those Photo by Richard Bermack. who had not been able to escape his armies, were jailed and/or shot. As But several thousands of them alleviate the plight of the Spanish ref- Count Ciano, Italy’s ambassador to joined the French underground or ugees in France. To be sure, they were Franco’s Spain, cheerfully reported De Gaulles’ army, for which they now free to move in liberated France, to Mussolini, by June 1939 tens of fought in France, in Italy, and even in but they lived pretty miserable lives thousands had been executed. And in Norway. And in North Africa, they for many years. My maternal uncle December 1939 there were over a quar- famously fought in General Leclerc’s Segundo Aguinaga, for instance, sur- ter of a million political prisoners in Second Armored Division, which was vived by collecting trash and selling jails and concentration camps all over later moved to France on D-Day and whatever was salvageable in it until he Spain, while the rest of the population which, disobeying General Patton’s died in Paris in 1958. suffered very serious deprivations and order, directly attacked Paris. And, in The more fortunate exiles persecutions. So by comparison, to be fact, it was the Spaniards of Leclerc’s in exile was to be lucky. 9th Company (popularly called “La Some Spanish refugees were for- Except, of course, that innumera- Nueve,” "The Ninth," commanded tunate, in particular the 30,000 or so ble children were separated from their by Amado Granell) that first entered who ended up in Latin America, and mothers and their mothers from their Paris on August 25, 1944, waiving the very especially the over 20,000 of us husbands, while some 250,000 men Spanish republican flag atop their light who went to Mexico between 1939 who had taken refuge in France or in tanks named “Brunete,” “Guadalajara,” and 1942. No government in the world North Africa were put in concentra- “Guernica,” “Teruel,” “Madrid,” or was ever so friendly and generous to tion camps and soon became so-called “Don Quijote.” And it was members of Spanish refugees as the Mexican gov- “compulsory workers” for the French “La Nueve” who, at the insistence of ernment (led then by General Lázaro army and then for the Nazis, who General Leclerc, led the victory parade Cárdenas) was with us. But let me sent many of them to German labor along the Champs Elisées. remind you of part of the context to camps, and 7,200 of them were sent But even that significant participa- this generosity. to Mauthausen’s concentration camp, tion in one of the most joyful moments During the Civil War only two where about 5,000 of them died. in French history was not enough to countries had openly supported the
8 THE VOLUNTEER September 2009 On the Spanish Exile of 1939: Remarks at the S.F. Reunion
Spanish Republic: the Soviet Union so-called “illegal immigrants.” Bertolt As I have said, we had schools and Mexico. And Mexico not only Brecht, whose cynical realism is still opened for us by agencies of the gov- sent food to Spain, but even some crucial for an understanding of the ernment of the Republic in exile in war material. This was done mostly 1920s and 1930s put it simply and which, together with some Mexican by very complicated smuggling bluntly: A passport is the essence of a teachers, the very best exiled Spanish procedures in order to fool the Non- person’s dignity. A passport, that is, as teachers taught us. Our math and Intervention powers (Great Britain against those pieces or paper common science classes did not create any and France) that all along were allow- in France (and in other parts of Europe) problems out of the ordinary for ing Germany and Italy to directly arm at the time that simply said: Laisser us, but Spanish history or literature Franco. Of course, when we consider passer, “allow to pass” (or to move classes were somewhat confusing the military help Franco received about); pieces of paper that through the and mystifying. Very few of us really from the Nazis and the Fascists, or the years became wrinkled and torn and knew anything about Spain, except help the Republic received from the dirty and almost unreadable. about the Civil War, and therefore, Soviet Union, the Mexican help may And so my parents, my sister, and most of what we were taught in those seem insignificant; but it had consid- I became Mexican, which, for instance, classes always seemed remote and erable symbolic value, and it foretold allowed me to obtain a passport and somewhat foreign. After all, what Mexico’s later generosity towards us. to come to the United States as a schol- could we care about the Goths and It must be understood that the arship student at the age of 16. Visigoths, or about the seven centuries relationship between Spain and But I cannot only emphasize long “Reconquest” of Muslim Spain by Mexico has historically been more Mexico here. The Soviet Union was the Christians, when outside of school than very complex since Hernán also generous towards Spanish we were surrounded by daily Mexican Cortés defeated the Aztecs and exiles. Except, of course, that when reality (including the memory of the conquered Mexico in the early 16th Hitler invaded the Soviet Union Aztecs)? And even if our parents century. And although that hap- in June 1941, many of the Spanish (mine, for instance) had little or no pened a long time ago and there are exiles fought (and died) against the money to speak of (our cheap furni- no “Aztecs” left, the Mexican people Nazis, while all of them had to bear ture, for instance, was repossessed tend to resent Spaniards. But General the same suffering as the rest of the a couple of times because we could Cárdenas was, in his peculiar way, Soviet population. By comparison, not meet the monthly payments), a socialist, and for him, Republican Mexico was paradise: we were wel- we were living in an extraordinarily Spain was not the country of Cortés, comed, there was no war, and no lively city larger than Madrid and but a nation where the people were Nazis were attacking us. Barcelona combined, we read Mexican fighting Fascism. And so, after the Yet exile is exile, and our elders comics, we sometimes managed to war, after our defeat, he opened the suffered their condition from day one find a few cents to go to the movies, door to us. This was done, first, by to the day of their death, a death that we played soccer with Mexican kids helping the Spanish Republic get for the greatest majority came there, in all over the place, we began to speak ships to take us to Mexico, and then Mexico. Very few went back to reside like Mexicans, we started having by allowing agencies of the Spanish in Spain. By the late 1960s some of girlfriends and boyfriends, and when Government in exile to help us in a those who had good jobs, and there- I was home doing homework, while variety of ways: finding jobs for our fore some money, would go to visit my parents were listening obsessively elders, opening schools for us, and Spain; but, as I say, very few returned to the radio to see how World War II even allowing us to become Mexican permanently. was going in Europe, my mind used citizens if we so wanted. But what about the children to wander. I like to think I understood Let us not underestimate this last and the adolescents who arrived in my parent’s anguish and despair, but point, especially these days when Mexico with them, the refugees of my somehow I was living a life different there is so much conflict concerning generation? Continued on page 10
September 2009 THE VOLUNTEER 9 Spanish Exile Continued from page 9 from theirs, a life that, in the end, have come to think, in its generational political legacy that must be remem- has made me a Spanish-Mexican, or evolution, exile tends to resemble bered, and studied, and taught to the a Mexican-Spaniard, and probably migration. Your grandparents came descendents of the men and women neither of the two. Add to this that, here (to the USA or wherever) some who, in the 1930’s, fought for Liberty as I say, at the age of 16 I received a time ago and you are what you are and Democracy against Fascism. scholarship to come to the USA. At the here, wherever that “here” is located. Correspondingly, I believe, we university here I worked as a waiter To be sure, original roots are a fine must ultimately distinguish between five days a week, while in the sum- thing to remember, and so the Irish- exile and migration, inasmuch as mers I worked as a lathe operator in a Americans have a parade in New York exile is always a consequence of very factory in Indiana. But hey! No sweat. on Saint Patrick’s Day, the Italians specific political conditions. And I I was living my own life, and when have their Columbus Day, and so on. think those of us who were children I went back to Mexico, I rejoined my But those are mythified celebra- during the Spanish Civil War have an friends, my generation’s life. So our tions of identity having nothing to do obligation to remember the dangers of elders suffered, and for them the pain with the struggle against fascism, and fascism and to pass that memory on, of exile never ended. But we were we are not here today to consider how among those of our own tribe and for living a different reality. Perhaps I the pains and sorrows of the past are the enlightenment of others. was especially superficial and/or cured by Time and Distance; that is to So I welcome this celebration. carefree, but I think my experience say, by changing generations. We are And I cannot but say: Long live the matches quite well with that of my here to remember the “enduring leg- International Brigades who fought contemporaries. acy” of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, Fascism in Spain! Long live the memory With time, of course, my genera- as the program well indicates. And of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade! tion began to have children. Mexican that, like the Spanish exile of 1939, is a or French or Chilean or Russian chil- dren. And I have to suppose that most of those children know something Spanish Citizenship Continued from page 1 about Spain and the Civil War. My children certainly do. Although it may rights and against U.S. wars of aggres- well happen, as in my case, that my sion. He is featured in the video Long children’s mother is not Spanish, but Shadows—Veterans Paths to Peace, pro- Mexican. duced by the Clarence Kailin Chapter But the grandchildren are a of Veterans for Peace. somewhat different story. And I have Hovan also remains on the known some Mexicans who have front lines of social change. When proudly told me that their grandfather he moved to an assisted-living facil- was a Spaniard, but then could not tell ity in Providence six years ago, he me when he arrived in Mexico. “Some began agitating among the residents time in the late thirties, I think,” they to improve the quality of their food. may say. And I am left vaguely won- They no longer have to eat pasta twice Clarence Kailin signing Spanish dering whether that person’s life has a day, Hovan said. citizenship papers. anything fundamental to do with A third vet, Matti Mattson of what happened during the Spanish Brooklyn, NY, has begun the process in 1938. “We shall not forget you,” she Civil War and its aftermath. of applying for Spanish citizenship. said, “and when the olive tree of But of course it does. No The rites of Spanish citizenship peace puts forth its leaves again… Spaniards came to Mexico “in the complete the circle promised by come back!…and all of you will find late thirties” who were not refugees Dolores Ibarruri at the farewell the love and gratitude of the whole from the Civil War. Only that, as I parade of the International Brigades Spanish people.”
10 THE VOLUNTEER September 2009 Book Reviews Spies in Madrid
The Maze of Cadiz. By Aly Monroe. John Murray Publishers, 292 pp. people who manage to offer unin- disapprove, but there’s no sense of trag- tended clues. edy as there is in John le Carré when a By Charles Oberndorf The author’s politics aren’t as clear character commits some moral evil in as those of Sansom, who was trying order to preserve the status quo. ver the past decade or so, Alan to give a history lesson: the Republic Furst has rejuvenated the spy was good, many communists were Onovel by setting it in the tur- bad (but some could be real idealists), Book News bulent 1930’s and 1940’s, where the and most fascists made Spain a very morality seems clear, but the politics bad place. In Monroe’s universe, we Paul Preston’s latest book, We and allegiances are not. Post-Civil War discover the suffering of the Spanish Saw Spain Die: Foreign Correspondents Spain poses a particular attraction: the through stories told to Cotton. He in the Spanish Civil War (Skyhorse Allies woo Spain to reject Hitler, but doesn’t meet the right people or go Publishing) is now available in a U.S. doing so supports a repressive govern- the right places for us to experience paperback edition. Among the writ- ment that has assisted Hitler and those burdens firsthand, so the politi- ers discussed are Ernest Hemingway, Mussolini. C.J. Sansom’s Winter in cal issues, which have an emotional Jay Allen, John Dos Passos, and Louis Madrid did a fine job of capturing that resonance in Sansom, here feel like Fischer. tension, and the reader felt a palpable anecdotes in a history text. Nor does sense of the postwar poverty, the ram- Monroe have Sansom’s sense of place; * * * pant hunger, and the brutality of the we get more a map of Cadiz than an Mark Derby has edited the first camps set up for former Republican actual feel for the city. account of the role of New Zealanders soldiers. Fortunately, Monroe has a much in the Spanish Civil War: Kiwi Just out in England is another better feel for her Spanish characters. Campañeros: New Zealand and the novel set in a similar vein, The Maze of She captures the social attitudes and Spanish Civil War (Christchurch, NZ: Cadiz. It’s 1944, and Franco is quietly the rhythms of the language. In fact, Canterbury University Press). switching allegiance from Germany it’s the Spaniards who make the novel to Britain. Peter Cotton is a wounded engaging. The best scenes are those war vet drafted into military intelli- featuring the Spanish police chief and Support the ALBA Bookshelf gence. Cotton’s father was a banker in an antiquarian book dealer. All Spanish Civil War books— Latin America, so Cotton’s command Unfortunately, the plot doesn’t as well as other books and of Spanish makes him ready-made begin to thicken until the book is merchandise—are available for a simple assignment: head to almost over. The last sections are through ALBA’s website link. Cadiz, Spain, and relieve Roland May, compelling and build to a climax that ALBA receives a commission an ineffectual agent, of his duties. should feel morally complex. Cotton at no cost to you. Unfortunately, May turns out to have takes a course of action of which http://www.alba-valb.org/books drowned, fallen from an embankment, most readers of The Volunteer would though it’s not clear if he fell, jumped, or was pushed. I would like to say at this point that Cotton begins some kind of inves- www.alba-valb.org tigation, but mostly he meets various
September 2009 THE VOLUNTEER 11 GENERAL CONTRIBUTIONS Sponsor ($1,000 - $2,499) Charles Chatfield-Taylor • Joan and Allan Fisch • Jeffrey Heisler • Estate of Virginia Malbin • Ellyn and James Polshek in honor of Pete Seeger • Wellfleet Foundation •
Supporter ($250 - $999) Burton Cohen • James Fernandez • Neil Friedman and Ellen Beth Bogolub • Suzanne Hosein in memory of Hy and Pearl Wallach • Gabriel Jackson in memory of Abe Osheroff and Irving Weissman • William T. Knight • Michael Organek • Joan K. Selznick • Jonathan Stein • Lotti Tobler-Berenson •
Contributor ($100 - $249) Joseph E. Agne in honor of John B. Fisher • Sara Alchermes • Bertrand Aubrey • Joan E. Balter • Christopher Brady • Joan Levenson Cohen • Stephen Dinnen in memory of Jack Shafran • Norman Dishotsky, MD, in memory of Robert J. Wright and Louis Dishotsky • Paulette Dubetz • Felice and Saul Ehrlich in memory of Moishe Brier • Lawrence Finkelstein • Noel and Catherine Folsom • Fredda Weiss Foundation • Herbert Freeman • Lola and Isaiah Gellman • Manuel Greer • Abraham Goldbaum • Kathy Hager and Art Wasserman in honor of Matti Mattson • Harold and Gertrude Hirschlag • Eric Howkins • Gordon Lafer • Clara Lilyblade • Fred Lisker in memory of Bill Sennett • Joseph Lovett in honor of Ellyn and James Polshek • Linda Lustig • Jordan Luttrell • Karla and Arthur Lutz in memory of Jack Egan and Jack and Tillie Olsen • Kay MacDermott in memory of Jack Shafran • PJ Maurer • Harold and Clara Melman • Antonio Miret in memory of Dave Smith • Lucienne O’Keefe • Tove Nicholson and Stanley Ofsevit in memory of Virginia Malbin • Dolores Protagoras • Retirees Association of District Council 37, AFSCME AFL-CLO • Suzanne and Alan Jay Rom in memory of Samuel S. Schiff and in honor of Pete Seeger’s 90th birthday on May 3 • William L. Rukeyser in honor of Frank Tinker’s 100th birth- day celebration • Peter L. Stansky • Roger A. Stoll • Beth Tesh in memory of J.C. Haley • Jordi Torrent in memory of James Yates • Noël Valis • Nancy Wallach in memory of Hy Wallach •
Friend ($1 - $99) Dorothy Adams • Everett Aison in memory of Irving Fajans • Clinton R. Arndt • David Balfour • M.G. Bailey • Pearl Baley • Joan Balter Enzo and Maria Bard • Norman Berkowitz in honor of Jack Lerman and in memory of Jack Shafran • Lawrence Bilick • Elizabeth Bouvier • Joan Bradshaw • Adele and Samuel Braude • Lee Brick in honor of Muriel Gladstein’s birthday • Peter N. Carroll • James V. Compton • Juanita Contreras • Abe Cotton in memory of Mel Anderson • Elsa Crumpley • Alice Dekker • Norman Eisner • Sidney and Anne Emerman in memory of Dr. Manny and Mrs. Sadie Klein • Alexandrina Esparza • Anne and Albert Filardo • Sam Frankel • Barbara J. Gingher • Hyman and Ruth Gold • Miriam Goldberg • Frances Goldin • Bernardo Gonzalez in memory of Jose Gonzalez • Ina Gordon and Edward Dick in memory of David Gordon • Irving Gordon • Mortimer Greenhouse • Michael Grossman • Annette Halpern • Timothy Harding • Earl Harju • John and Saundra Ekhause Harris in memory of Sidney Harris • Sam Frankel • Joyce Turner Hilkevitch in memory of Dr. Aaron Hilkevitch • Henry Horowitz • John Hovan • Henry and Judy Jacobs • Martha Olson Jarocki • John Jensen • Shirley Katz-Cohen in honor of Lou Czitrom • Charles Kaufman • Tom Kennedy • Robin Kerenyi • Ervine Kimerling in memory of Irving Fishgold • William Knapp • Dorothy Koppelman • Martha Kransdorf • Fran Krieger-Lowitz • Robert Kushner • Evelyn and Leon Lambert • Herbert and Gloria Leiderman • Samuel Lender in memory of Lenny Lamb and George Chaiken • Marlene Litwin • Henry Lowendorf and Susan Klein • Roger Lowenstein • Emanuel and Estelle Margolis • Raymond McGrath • Lyle and Barbara Mercer in memory of Bob Reed • Paul B. Mitchell • Bill Montross • Shirley Nash • Nancy Newkirk • Mary Ann Nikl • Susan Nobel • Michael O’Connor • Frieda Orenstein in memory of Harry Orenstein • Irwin Oreskes • Jack Ostrager in memory of Ken Bridenthal • Herbert Ostroff • Saul and Elizabeth Ostrow • Edith Oxfeld • Victoria Parraga • Sally Pincus • Palmer Pinney • Robert A. Potter • Michael Predmore • Paul Preuss and Debra Turner • John Radich • Marsha Raleigh • Justine Roberts • Bill Roller • Rosalie Ross • Marie Runyon • Marie Salwen • Peter Schwab • Leon and Jeanne Schwartz • Richard Seeley • Douglass and Karen Seidman in memory of Elkin Wendkos • Anita Shapiro • Lewis Siegelbaum in memory of Morton Siegelbaum • Carol Ruth Silver • Rudy Simons • Irwin Sollinger • Arlene Spero • A. June Spero • Frances Steadman • Helen Tarail • Mildred Thompson • William D. Strong • Pierre-Paul Villafafila • Eric Volpe • Georgia Wever in memory of Moe Fishman and Jack Shafran • Sam and Hilda Weinberg • Ted Watts • Ruth and Norman Williams in memory of Walter Green • Sydney Williams in memory of Al Tanz •
The above donations were made from February 1, 2009, through August 7, 2009. All donations made after August 7 will appear in the December 2009 issue of The Volunteer. Your continued support of ALBA and its important projects is so appreciated!
12 THE VOLUNTEER September 2009 CONSIDER A BEQUEST FOR ALBA Join ALBA’s Guernica Society
The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives’ Guernica Society is a charitable gift annuity program. How a gift annuity works
The concept of a gift annuity is simple. A person wishing to support ALBA makes a gift of cash or marketable securities worth a minimum of $5,000. ALBA reinvests the assets and pays you or your designated beneficiaries a fixed income for life. Upon the death of the last beneficiary, the remaining funds are deposited into ALBA’s endowment.
Currently, gifts must be made by persons over the age of 60. If you are under 60, you can still set up an annuity and defer the payments until any day after your 60th birthday. This gives you an immediate tax deduction for your gift while guaranteeing you a regular stream of payments in the future.
The transaction is partly a charitable gift and partly a purchase of the income interest. Annuity payments are determined by the age or ages of the beneficiaries.
What are the advantages of a Charitable Gift Annuity? Income for Life You have the benefit of a lifetime income for yourself and another person, if you choose. Tax Deduction Savings The portion of the transaction that is considered a gift qualifies as a charitable income tax deduction. Tax-Free Income Part of the annual income is considered a tax-free return of capital, excluding it from gross income until you reach your life expectancy. Capital Gains Tax Savings If you contribute appreciated securities, you will need to pay some capital gains taxes for the “sale” portion of the transaction, but it is payable over your life expectancy – rather than being due all at once. Significant Support for ALBA The ability to support ALBA to a greater degree than you might have thought possible.
For more information, contact Jeanne Houck, Executive Director, at (212) 674-5398.
September 2009 THE VOLUNTEER 13 The Volunteer Nn o PrOFIT org c/o Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives US Postage 799 Broadway, Suite 341 Paid New York, NY 10003 San Francisco, CA permit no. 1577 Change Service Requested
ALBA FALL PROGRAMS Wednesday, October 7, 6:30-8:30 pm At Home in Utopia (Living in the “Coops”) (2008) Screening and discussion with filmmaker Michal Goldman KJCC, 53 Washington Square South, NYC; free to the public Sponsored by the Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives, the Gotham Center for NYC History/CUNY and the King Juan Carlos Center Monday, October 26, 7 pm Into the Fire: American Women in the Spanish Civil War Discussion with filmmaker Julia Newman Global Sisterhood: The Women’s Media Group Film Series, 2009-2010 1517 W. Fullerton, Chicago $10 donation; call the box office at (773) 281-9075 ext 4 or order tickets online at www.facets.org. Presented by Women’s Media Group (www.wmgchicago.com), in collaboration with Facets Multimedia and ALBA. Tuesday, October 27, 8 pm The Good Fight: The Abraham Lincoln Brigade and the Spanish Civil War (1984) 25th anniversary screening and reception with filmmakers Noel Buckner, Mary Dore and Sam Sills Stranger than Fiction Series: IFC Center 323 Sixth Ave. @ 3rd St. NYC. $15; order tickets on-line at http://STFdocs.com. Wednesday, December 2, 5:30 pm Screening and Discussion Double Feature! 5:30-7:30 Feature Film: Spain Again (1969). Directed by Jaime Camino, written by Román Gubern and Jaime Camino. Guest speaker: Román Gubern. 7:30-9:30 Documentary: A War in Hollywood (2008). Directed by Oriol Porta. Guest Speakers: Oriol Porta and Román Gubern KJCC, 53 Washington Square South, NYC. Cosponsored by ALBA and the King Juan Carlos Center.