The International Brigades were a hybrid bunch: multi-ethnic, multi-national—and multi-lingual: not everybody spoke everybody’s language. This posed serious organizational challenges for the Republican war effort.
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The Antifascist Tower of Babel: Language Barriers in Civil-War Spain
The Record of John Gates at the Front by Unattributed
The Record of John Gates at the Front, as described by his by his Brigade Commander The Volunteer for Liberty, V1, No. 20, October 25, 1937. 86 Brigada Mixta – Mando The adjutant Political Commissar of the 86th Brigade, Comrade John Gates, was one of the organizers of the 20th International Battalion that left...
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Ramón Sender Movie Screening at King Juan Carlos Center on Nov. 19
Spanish Republican Exile / Intimate Portraits: Sender Barayón. A Trip into the Light (2019) Venue: KJCC Auditorium // 53 Washington Square South, NYC November 19, 2019 7:00 pm Sender Barayón. A Trip to the Light (2019) Documentary , Dir. Luis Olano Runtime: 1 hour 32 minutes In English US premiere From the Spanish Civil...
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The Organization of the Medical Services in the 86th Brigade by Unattributed
Nuestra Voz, Organo de la 86 Brigada, No. 3, 18 de Julio 1937, p. 4-5 The comrades fighting in the front lines know better than anybody else the importance of having a well organized Medical Corps. Both the health of the soldier in everyday life and the condition of the same man, when wounded...
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“Happy Landing” by Lieutenant Pete Laly
Nuestra Voz, Organo de la 86 Brigada, No. 2, 13 de Julio 1937, p. 3 Lieutenant Ronald Dart served as a combat officer in the American Air Force for seven years. In sympathy with the workers of the world, he resigned his commission. When the call to arms was sounded by the anti-fascists, he...
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In Line Again by unattributed
Nuestra Voz, Organo de la 86 Brigada, No. 1, 2 de Junio 1937, p. 3 The English Company of the 20th Battalion has had its baptism. Isolated from the main body of the Battalion, waiting for relief from day to day, the company maintained its morale, held its discipline. It learned and it has...
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BALLAD OF TERUEL by Unattributed
The Volunteer, v2, no. 2, January 13, 1938 BALLAD OF TERUEL The General stood in Teruel Whence not a few had fled; He called his brave defenders up And unto them he said: “Soldiers, today we stand as one To crush the wicked Red....
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Contribution of Cyprus to the Cause of Spanish Democracy by Michael Economides
The Volunteer for Liberty, p. 10.v.2, no. 2, January 13, 1938. Cyprus, a small island in the Eastern Mediterranean, has a population of 340,000. Cyprus, now a British colony, has been under British imperialist domination since 1878. The foreign ruler subjects the people to a life of degradation and misery. ...
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Lloyd Edward Johnson (1896-1938) Volunteer
Lloyd Edward Johnson was 41-years old when he arrived in Spain in April 1937. He was the oldest of four sons born to Norwegian immigrants Seavert and Nesina Johnson. Johnson was born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota. He applied for a position as an apprentice electrician with the Northern Pacific Railway Company when...
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Colonel LeBeau by Hilliard Bernstein
Pursuit of Reason, Philadelphia: Adelante Press, 1971, p.19-20 “Wat’s dis, wat’s dis?” Colonel Jean LeBeau bounced along the line of fire like a bullet-proof ball. “Come ‘lone der, Yanks. Let’s go! Up de hill, up de hill!” The Colonel put his whole, squat body into his appeal to get the men moving. He waved...
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Hubs of Antifascism: The Spanish Anarchist Press in the United States
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Among the thousands of Spanish workers who arrived in the United States around the turn of the twentieth century were many with radical traditions rooted in their homeland, which at the time boasted one of the world’s most vibrant anarchist movements. They created scores of cultural and mutual aid societies in cities and rural...
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The Girl Who Dated Trotsky’s Assassin: The Story Behind an Iconic Photograph
Marina Ginestà became world-famous late in life when a stunning photograph taken at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War surfaced in a Spanish archive. With the help of Marina’s son, the journalist Yvonne Scholten uncovers new details of Ginestà’s adventurous life.
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Poetry Feature: Abe & Jack, Milt, Moe, Dave…
Abe & Jack, Milt, Moe, Dave… They were not my family. They distrusted strangers. I could only approach them slowly, these Americans who had volunteered to fight fascists in the Spanish Civil War. They lost, bad guys won—they bore failure like primal sin or first love that comes and goes, never leaves....
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From New York Chinatown to Spain: Wen-Rao Chen
Twenty-five years ago, Len and Nancy Tsou made a ten-day trip to Spain tracing some of the battlefields where Chinese brigadistas had fought in the Spanish Civil War. Among other sites, they followed the trail of a Lincoln vet, Wen-Rao Chen of the XVth International Brigade, who lost his life in the battle of...
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Loyalist Voices Crying Out across the Ocean: the EAQ Radio Broadcast during the Spanish Civil War
In the spring of 1937, a group of English-speaking journalists and filmmakers launched a shortwave radio broadcast from Madrid to tell the world what was happening in Spain firsthand. It found an eager audience all across the United States and Canada.
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Ramon Sender Barayón: A Pioneer in Music & Memory: An interview with Filmmaker Luis Olano
Ramon Sender Barayón is a pioneer of US counterculture and the son of Amparo Barayón, who was killed by fascists in the Spanish Civil War, and the novelist Ramón J. Sender. A new documentary by Luis Olano sheds light on his remarkable life.
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History and Intimacy: Reading the Lincolns’ Letters in a College Classroom Today
ALBA’s teaching resources are used in college and high-school classrooms throughout the United States. A testimonial from the University of Chicago.
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The San Francisco Monument Repaired: Taps for the Abraham Lincoln Brigade
A decade after its inauguration on the San Francisco Embarcadero, the only government-supported monument to the Lincoln Brigade in the USA has been restored. The following article first appeared in Counterpunch on August 16, 2008, soon after the original dedication ceremonies.
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Fifty Million Dollars for Spain: Ernst Toller’s Forgotten Relief Campaign
In the midst of the Spanish Civil War, the German writer Ernst Toller organized a multi-million-dollar international campaign to alleviate the hunger and misery of Spain’s civilian population. Although Toller’s herculean effort garnered broad support, it has been largely forgotten.
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El Zapatero: A Memoir
A seasoned New York City reporter’s search for her family history leads her back to Civil War Spain.
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ALBA's project to provide a complete list of the more than 2,800 individuals who left from U.S. territory to fight with the Spanish Republic
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