The tolerance, naivety, passivity and even complicity of our democracy is what has allowed them to become emboldened. That is why now they no longer hesitate to use the institutions to whitewash the dictatorship, wielding a string of falsehoods and half-truths.
Vox glorifying Francoism! Let’s tear our clothes! Let’s get very indignant. If we are politicians, let’s make very intense statements. If we are journalists, let’s shout at gatherings or express our anger in writing. If we are citizens, let’s tweet very loudly and express our discomfort in the office, the market or the bar on the corner. Well, okay. All of this must be done, but I add something: And what else? Should we leave it there until next time, as we have been doing for the last half century? Have we not yet learned that words alone will achieve nothing?
This Monday García Gallardo once again put on the blue shirt in the parliament of Castilla y León to praise the dictator. Six days before, one of his century companions was not far behind in the Congress of Deputies when he affirmed that Franco’s tyranny “was not dark, as this Government sells us, but rather a stage of reconstruction, progress and reconciliation to achieve national unity.” Disgusting and all fake, yes. They’re getting higher and higher, too. AND…? Don’t we remember that when Abascal founded Vox he stated that Franco’s supporters could feel comfortable in his party? Have we forgotten that the far-right force is still a split from the main conservative party that has governed this country for 15 years? Do we prefer not to mention that this PP arose from that Popular Alliance that was born in a Congress full of former leaders of the dictatorship and whose soundtrack was an endless succession of “hurrahs” for Franco?
As I said, it is okay to get angry at fascists who do fascist things, but we cannot stop there, much less cheat ourselves alone. We are not facing the exception, but rather the rule. Until practically yesterday the dictator rested in the largest monument in this country and today, although in a more discreet place, his tomb continues to be a temple of fascist exaltation that all Spaniards pay for. During almost 50 years of democracy, Francoism has been allowed to be whitewashed, it has been tolerated that this historical period was not taught or was poorly taught to the new generations, it has been normalized that the tens of thousands of victims were insulted and humiliated.
Let’s see. Fuck! That today in Madrid there is still a street dedicated to the volunteers who fought under the flag of the swastika and under the orders of Hitler, while he devastated Europe and perpetrated the Holocaust. That today in many towns symbols, statues and plaques dedicated to coup plotters, war criminals and fascists are still present. That today the State still does not assume, as a state task and an institutional responsibility, the recovery of the bodies of those who were murdered for defending democracy. That the latest Democratic Memory law still does not even serve to outlaw fascist foundations that we finance with our taxes. That if the relative of a victim wants Justice to pursue his murderers, he has to go to Argentina so that a court deigns to listen to them… In this context, are we really so surprised that the gentlemen of Vox say the things that are said?
We will not be able to face this very serious problem, which turns us into a low-quality democracy, until we recognize the truth: Franco lives. We can continue to deceive ourselves, as our parents did, or accept the harsh reality to try to change it. The dictator died in bed, 49 years ago, but his spirit continued and continues to parasitize part of the institutions, the judiciary, the forces of public order, the sacristies, the boards of directors of large companies and the newsrooms. The truly democratic politicians who led the Transition did not do their job. They recovered our freedoms in exchange for a very high price that we continue to pay today: maintaining the historical falsification, preserving the equation between fascists and democrats, not disturbing the establishment emerged during the bloody dictatorship and not break the powerful ties that united the newborn democracy with the old totalitarian system.
Until 1986 we were able to accept the hackneyed excuse of “not much more could be done”, justified by the real risk of suffering a coup d’état if we dared to try to uproot Francoism. From that year on, with its second consecutive absolute majority and now without saber rattling, we can and must point out Felipe González and Alfonso Guerra. They were the main culprits of keeping the spirit of the dictator alive with their cowardly, equidistant, insensitive and ignorant policies. That injustice has not been corrected since. Zapatero was timid and his advances were too little. The current coalition government has been braver and has at least removed from Cuelgamuros the remains of the dictator and the founder of the first Spanish fascist party. However, its determination on this issue and its Democratic Memory law remain very insufficient.
That is the context that explains everything. The tolerance, naivety, passivity and even complicity of our democracy is what has allowed them to become emboldened. That is why now they no longer hesitate to use the institutions to whitewash the dictatorship, wielding a string of falsehoods and half-truths. That is why they dare to trample on the memory of the victims. That is why every day they will take another step, undermining Parliament, generating hatred and questioning the foundations of our regime of freedoms. That is why they will end up openly calling for the end of democracy. They dare because, unlike what Germany did with Hitler or Italy with Mussolini, Spain allowed Franco to stay alive after his death. There are no half measures or good solutions. We still have time to kill the bloodthirsty dictator with determination, legislation and education. Will we do it or will we settle for the wild card of outrage?
#Vox #glorifies #Franco #novelty
