News from Spain: Citizenship for IB Descendants; the Jarama March; Spanish Citizenship
Catalonia’s Alvah Bessie Program Reports Progress
At the official announcement of the Alvah Bessie Program, Mataró Cemetery, April 29, 2022, with Dan Bessie speaking.
An article in The Guardian on May 29 reported that the Alvah Bessie Program, through which the government of Catalonia seeks to locate, exhume, identify, and repatriate the remains of International Brigade Volunteers who died during the Spanish Civil War, has been making strides. By now, the program has assembled a list of 522 IB members who can be assumed to have been buried in Catalonian soil, including 286 from the United States and 86 from Great Britain. Most of these were casualties of the Battle of the Ebro. The team of researchers, which includes Jordi Martí, the author of a book on IB volunteers, has relied heavily on the archival resources provided by organizations like ALBA and the IBMT. The Volunteer published an FAQ about the program in September 2022 (https://albavolunteer.org/2022/11/catalonias-alvah-bessie-program-faqs/). For more information, search for “Alvah Bessie Programme” or write to memoria.justicia@gencat.cat.
AABI Organizes Jarama March
The Association of Friends of the International Brigades (AABI) has announced that the next annual Jarama Memorial March will take place on Saturday, February 22nd, 2025 in the Jarama Valley (Spain). This year, AABI has chosen to honor the members of the International Brigades from North America, including the Lincoln Battalion, which included volunteers from the US, Canada, Cuba, Japan and other countries. For more information, contact AABI at amigosbrigadasinternacionales@gmail.com.
Spanish Citizenship for IB Descendants
ALBA has been consulting with our community and partners about the changes in Spain’s Democratic Memory Law that allow for the direct descendants of brigadistas to apply for Spanish citizenship. Many have begun the process and are sharing their experiences.
In cooperation with Patricia Ure of the Madrid-based Association of Friends of the International Brigades (AABI), and Amanda Klonsky, granddaughter of brigadista Robert Klonsky, ALBA has made available a document with useful information to apply for citizenship. The document can be accessed at https://bit.ly/ALBA-Spanish-citizenship. A similar information sheet from our friends at the International Brigade Memorial Trust (IBMT) in the UK can be accessed at https://bit.ly/IBMT-Spanish-citizenship. (NB: This information is subject to change and does not constitute legal advice.)
