In one of the most moving episodes in the history of international diplomacy, between 1939 and 1942 the administration of Mexican President Lázaro Cárdenas provided refuge to 25,000 Spanish exiles from their French concentration camps. Seventy-five years ago the first of the three boats, the Sinaia, arrived in the state of Veracruz carrying the...
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“I do not regret at all having been in Spain at the time, I would not have missed it for the world. For me it was the teaching of my life; I learned camaraderie, solidarity, to be considerate of others.” Hans Landauer, Austrian Brigader We are sad to report that we received notice this...
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The Spanish historian Ángel Viñas, who was interviewed by the Volunteer last year, summarizes his research findings for the magazine Témpora in a concise new piece on the causes and responsibilities of the Spanish Civil War. Read it here (in Spanish). More on Prof. Viñas’s blog.
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One of the most memorable and original renditions of the Spanish Civil War songs that Pete Seeger made famous were recorded in the late 1960s by the Liberation Orchestra, under the brilliant direction of bassist and activist Charlie Haden. Haden passed away this week.
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On July 9, one month after his 97th birthday, Gert Hoffmann, passed on peacefully and safely at home in Austria. Gert joined the International Brigade in 1938. Upon the defeat of the Spanish Republic he, along with some 400,000 Spanish, crossed the border into France where they found themselves interned on the beaches in...
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Our friends at the International Brigade Memorial Trust have made a slideshow with images of their annual commemoration at the IB monument in Jubilee Gardens, London, last weekend. Click on any image to begin: http://bit.ly/1qJqEMW. Photos by Andrew Wiard.
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The Asociación de Amigos de las Brigadas Internacionales (AABI) has produced an interactive map of the tribute memorials to the International Brigades across Spain. The project in an ongoing labor, and anyone with information on a monument not currently included on the map, is welcome to contribute information and photos through AABI’s website. The map is...
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Seeger Fest, a free five-day celebration of the music and life of Pete and Toshi Seeger will take place July 17 -21 in New York City and the Hudson Valley. Organized by the Seegers’ grandson, Kitama Cahill-Jackson, the festivities will include: concerts, film screenings, boat rides, and a photo exhibit. The strong support and...
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Documentary filmmaker Pamela Yates writes on Facebook: Joyce Horman never gave up on the quest for justice. Seeking justice is justice, and finally the U.S. role in ordering the murder of two US citizens in 1973, Charles Horman and Frank Teruggi, is verified by the Chilean courts. The perps are mostly dead – but this...
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“The United States military intelligence services played a pivotal role in setting up the murders of two American citizens in 1973, providing the Chilean military with the information that led to their deaths, a court here has ruled,” Pascale Bonnefoy writes in the New York Times today: The recent court decision found that an American naval...
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The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives (ALBA) is an educational non-profit dedicated to promoting social activism and the defense of human rights. ALBA’s work is inspired by the American volunteers of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade who fought fascism in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). Learn more at our website or
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New information about the New Zealand-born Spanish Civil War surgeon Doug Jolly (1904-1983) has emerged following the recent publication of his biography, Frontline Surgeon.
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On September 24, 1945, Dr. Barsky delivered this speech during the Spanish Refugee Appeal rally at Madison Square Garden.
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In 1944, Barsky wrote A Surgeon Goes to War, an 18-chapter memoir of his time in Spain, which was never published but can be consulted at NYU’s Tamiment Library. This is the first chapter.
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Self-effacing and shy though he was, Dr. Edward Barsky’s experience in Spain made him an outspoken activist, tireless organizer, innovative frontline surgeon, and political prisoner. “Eddie is a saint,” Hemingway wrote. “That’s where we put our saints in this country—in jail.”
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The Volunteer is thrilled to honor Dr. Barsky on the fiftieth anniversary of his death.
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For Edward Barsky, political and humanitarian activism were two sides of the same coin. Those who persecuted him begged to differ.
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The time she spent in civil-war Spain loomed large in the life of Martha Gellhorn, the St. Louis-born war journalist. “The truth is that Martha could not stop thinking, feeling, and writing about her Spanish experiences.” “Objectivity bullshit.” That’s what Martha Gellhorn (1908-1998) called the journalism of her day. Her letters to personalities like...
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Among the thousands of Jewish volunteers who joined the International Brigades were many descendants of the Sephardim. What was it like for them to “return” to Spain? Three case studies: Lini de Vries, César Covo, and Samuel Nahman, aka Manny Harriman.
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How the 22-year-old Jewish American dancer Janet Riesenfeld performed flamenco to help raise money for the Second Republic under fascist attack.
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Why did Jawaharlal Nehru, future prime minister of India, visit civil-war Spain in 1938? As it turned out, the triangular relationship between Britain, Spain, and India had deep cultural and geopolitical implications.
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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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