April 6, 1956: On this date, Ray Anderson died. Born in Lake City, MN in 1908, he fought in Spain defending the Republic against Franco’s fascists. He served as a machine gunner in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade. He was captured during Retreats but was freed in a prisoner exchange on April 22, 1939. He returned to the US May 6, 1939 and subsequently built a landscaping and gardening company in California.
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April 1, 1939: The Spanish civil war ended, with victory for General Franco's Nationalist forces against the democratic Republican forces. The workers, who launched a revolution against the coup attempt, were overcome. @workingclasshistory tell the story in their podcast episodes 39-40:
#SpanishCivilWar #Spain #antifa
https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e39-the-spanish-civil-war-an-introduction/
Working Class History · E39-40: The Spanish civil warDouble podcast episode where we give a brief general overview of the Spanish civil war and revolution which broke out after the attempted military coup by right-wing general Francisco Franco 1936-1…
Mar 30, 1915: On this date, Catalan anarchist guerrilla Francesc Sabate Llopart (AKA El Quico) was born in Barcelona. After the Civil War he fought in the underground resistance against the Franco dictatorship, becoming Franco's public enemy no. 1.
Blockade Runners to Spain Memorial on the Clyde Walkway near the Jamaica Street Bridge in Glasgow.
A memorial to the British seafarers who strove to break the fascist blockade of Republican ports during the Spanish Civil War.
La Pasionaria on the Clyde Waterfront in Glasgow. Featuring a statue of Dolores Ibarruri, it's a memorial to the volunteers of the Internarional Brigade who fought and died in the fight against the forces of fascism in the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s.
Today in Labor History February 21, 1937: The League of Nations banned foreign nationals from volunteering in the Spanish Civil War. Nevertheless, thousands from Britain, the U.S. and other countries came to Spain and joined the Republicans in the fight against Franco and fascism. Altogether, over 59,000 international volunteers supported the anti-fascist cause, along with over 3,000 soviet “technicians.” Roughly 500,000 soldiers and civilians died in the war. The antifascist republican forces lost, leading to a 40-year fascist dictatorship.
One of the battalions of American volunteers was named the Tom Mooney Machine-Gun Company, after the anarchist IWW member Tom Mooney, who was framed for the 1916 Preparedness Day bombing in San Francisco. It was led by Oliver Law, a communist, and the first black man known to have commanded white U.S. troops. Law was from West Texas and had worked as a stevedore. Due to his skill, Law quickly rose in the ranks of the Republican army. However, he died on July 9, 1937, as he led an attack on Mosquito Crest.
You can read more about Mooney here: https://michaeldunnauthor.com/2024/05/19/tom-mooney-and-warren-billings/
Feb 7, 1912: On this date, Edward Muscala was born in Minneapolis, MN. He served in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade in the Spanish Civil War. He was killed in action April 3, 1938 during the Retreats.
#SpanishCivilWar #Minneapolis #MN #Antifa #Mpls
Jan 30, 1907: Carl Gustave Belau was born in St Paul, MN on this date. He fought in the Spanish Civil War in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade. He served at Teruel & Retreats. Reported as missing in action at Retreats. He was captured by the fascists on 3/10/1938. He was released in a prisoner exchange 10/08/1938 & returned to the US on 10/18/1938. He died in 1964 & is buried in Mahtomedi, MN.
Jan 29, 1919: On this date, Marina Ginestà was born in Toulouse. At age 17, she was photographed in an iconic image from the Spanish Civil War standing on the roof of a hotel in Barcelona. “Dressed in military uniform with the wind in her hair, & armed with a rifle (the first & only time in her life, she later stated), Marina was witness to a historic moment, & instantly became a symbol of the hopefulness of revolution.”
Girl Museum · Marina Ginestà on a Rooftop - Girl MuseumMarina was just 17, yet the rifle she carried and the defiantly optimistic look on her face would ensure her name went down in history
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He particularly admired Irish literature and music and was an avid reader of WB Yeats.
Paul Robeson signing Joe Hill to Scottish miners in 1949:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0bezsMVU7c
#PaulRobeson #SpanishCivilWar #Ireland #WBYeats
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... and it continued with his support for the Republican cause during the Spanish Civil War and his involvement in the Council on African Affairs.
He fell foul of senator Joe McCarthy’s House Un-American Activities Committee and had his passport and concerts cancelled. Before then he visited Ireland at least three times and performed in Dublin, Limerick, and Cork in the 1930s.
#PaulRobeson #SpanishCivilWar #Ireland #WBYeats
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Paul Robeson died on 23 January 1976. He was an American concert artist, stage and film actor, professional football player and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his political stances.
Robeson's political activities began with his involvement with unemployed workers and anti-imperialist students in Britain...
#PaulRobeson #SpanishCivilWar #Ireland #WBYeats
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Jan 19, 1910: On this date, Donald Arthur Simpson was born in Minneapolis, MN. He fought fascism in the Spanish Civil War and WW2. He served in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade in Spain as a mechanic. He returned to the US aboard the Ausonia on Dec 20, 1938 and served in the US armed forces in WW2. He died Mar 12, 2004.
#Minneapolis
#MN
#Antifa
#PrematureAntifascist
#SpanishCivilWar
#WW2
The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives · Simpson, Donald Arthur | The Abraham Lincoln Brigade ArchivesSimpson, Donald Arthur. b. January 19, 1910, Minneapolis, Minnesota; 13 years of education; Single; Mechanic and Miner; CP, CIO, IUMMSW, and Spanish CP; Received Passport# 25196, San Francisco series…
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Paul Rundgren returned to the US on Feb 4, 1939. He served as a sergeant in the 71st Infantry Division, 5th Infantry Regiment in WW2. He committed suicide Feb 16, 1950 & is buried in Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minneapolis, MN. (2/2)
Jan 18, 1911: On this date, Paul Rundgren was born in Minneapolis, MN. He fought the fascists in the Spanish Civil War. He graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1928. Joined the MN National Guard & served in an artillery unit. He arrived in Spain June 7, 1937; served in the John Brown Battery (155 mm artillery); in action on the Extremadura & Toledo Fronts. (1/2)
#WW2 #SpanishCivilWar #ALBA #Antifa #MN #MPLS
https://alba-valb.org/volunteers/paul-william-rundgren/
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After the Spanish Civil War, Len Olson worked as a WW2 Shipyard Worker & Merchant Marine. He died May 1998. Len Olson’s daughter, Hannah Olson Creighton wrote this touching tribute of her father. (3/3)
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Len Olson arrived in Spain on Jan 31, 1938. He served with the XV BDE, Lincoln-Washington BN, Co. 3, & was a light machine-gunner. He was later transferred to a machine gun company in the Canadian international battalion, the Mackenzie-Papineau BN. He served at Retreats & the Ebro Offensive. He was wounded in action & returned to the US on Dec 20, 1938. (2/3)
Jan 7, 1902: Leonard Olson (Olsen) was born in Virginia, MN on this date. He served in the antifascist forces defending democracy in the Spanish Civil War. He attended Virginia High School through the 9th grade and later apprenticed with a carpenter. Over his life he worked as a barber’s apprentice, a steeplejack, a house painter, a lumberjack, a seaman. (1/3)
Jan 6, 1913: On this date Patrick Garofalo was born in St Paul, MN. He served in the Abraham Lincoln Battalion in the Spanish Civil War. He arrived in Spain on March 11, 1937. He served with the XV BDE, Transport and Company 3 of the Lincoln Battalion. During the Ebro Offensive, he was captured by fascist forces and executed on September 7, 1938.
Spanish Republican militiawomen training outside Barcelona, August 1936. Photographs by Gerda Taro.
