Letter From ALBA: Extraordinary Circumstances
Dear Friends,
Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. For the first time in the 16-year history of the ALBA/Puffin Award, two recipients received the full prize: Bay Resistance and Unión del Barrio, two California-based organizations that have spent many years developing networks, tactics, and strategies to protect vulnerable populations against state and corporate abuse.
At the gathering on May 2 in New York City, the two organizations’ leaders, Adriana Jasso and Kimi Lee, painted a stark picture of the scale of the violent repression and persecution immigrants and other communities have been facing over the past year and a half. But they also underscored two other crucial points. First, the recent escalations build on structures and policies that have been many years in the making. And, second, effective resistance and structural change are not only necessary, but possible. We encourage you to listen to Adriana’s and Kimi’s sobering and inspiring words on ALBA’s YouTube channel.
We know the battle against fascism will be long and hard. But we’ve been fighting for a long time—and we’re inspired and encouraged by the example set by those who went before us. That inspiration is, in the end, what ALBA and this magazine hope to provide. As our April roundtable on teaching antifascism at colleges and universities made clear, every new attempt to silence us is also an opportunity to underscore the relevance of our educational work.
In this issue, we’re bringing you Judith Adler’s touching story of a letter from a Lincoln vet discovered by chance, decades later, between the leaves of her father’s copy of The Lincoln Battalion, by Eddie Rolfe. Aurélie Vialette, at Yale, reports on her students’ moving engagement with a Spanish Civil War archive.
A feature article by Jonathan Sherry sets the record straight, once and for all, on Juan Negrín, the much-maligned Prime Minister of the Spanish Republic. Miguel Caballero, who spent years studying the way that the Republicans dealt with the destruction of the war, shows us that conservation of art and architecture can be a revolutionary practice. For more art, we point you to the richly illustrated article in which Richard Haw guides us through the powerful Spanish Civil War paintings of Leon Bibel.
As fascism rises, so does our resolve to resist it. As we’re heading into what will no doubt be a challenging summer and fall, ALBA’s small but dedicated staff is working hard to offer you inspiring and engaging programs. Keep an eye out for announcements or visit our event calendar at alba-valb.org/eventcalendar.
None of this, of course, is possible without your steady support. We can’t tell you how grateful we are. ¡No pasarán!
Salud,
Sebastiaan Faber & James D. Fernández, editors
