Four Fingers of Blood

Catalonia has its own history, culture and language, as do other parts of Spain. King Felipe V, the monarch of Spain, captured the region in 1714. With the troops came the loss of autonomy. Catalonians haven't taken it well. The push for autonomy in the 1930s was one of the reasons behind the Spanish Civil War, and the resulting Franco dictatorship crushed many civil liberties.

Today is Sant Jordi Festival. According to legend, St. George killed a dragon that had menaced the medieval village. For this deed, he became Sant Jordi, the patron saint of dragon slayers and Catolonia.

People celebrate with a curious tradition of exchanging books and roses. The Boy left for school today, three roses in hand to give to each of his teachers.

Sant Jordi Festival is also a time to celebrate Catalan independence. As was reported around the world, on October 1, 2017, Catalans voted to secede from Spain in a referendum that has been declared illegal by the government in Madrid. After the Catalan Parliament officially voted to "create a Catalan republic as an independent state," Spain declared a state of emergency.

Spain took control of Catalonia, fired its president Carles Puigdemont, and called for top regional officials to be prosecuted for rebellion. Some members of the regional government are in jail pending trial.
Others, including Puigdemont, fled the country saying they had to leave in order to guarantee themselves a fair trial.

Like many political crises, the debate comes down to regional pride and money. There are strong and differing opinons on what should happen next. The establishment view is that Barcelona and Catalonia are a thriving economic engine. They see secession as akin to New York seceding from the union. Supporting poorer states like West Virgina and South Dakota is just what comes with the territory when you are a united country.

The Catalan independence camp sees this moment as an expression of self-determination and democracy. Catalonia has always been fiercely independent. In fact, the Catalan flag is an expression of that independent streak. The story goes that the Count of Barcelona, Wilfred the Hairy, was fighting alongside the (unironically named) Charles the Bald, the Frankish ruler, together battling the Moors to the South.

Wilfred the Hairy was seriously wounded and as Catalonia did not exist yet, it did not have a flag so the next day the Catalan troops would have to go into battle without their leader or a standard to rally to.

Before the battle began, Charles the Bald plunged his hands in Wilfred's wound and wiped his fingers across a golden shield and, with the shield, held high led the Catalan troops to victory.

For this reason, the four red stripes on a golden background of the Catalan flag are known as Els Quatre Dits de Sang or The Four Fingers of Blood. Today, a new flag includes a liberation star borrowing from the flags of Puerto Rico and Cuba who gained indendepence from Spain in 1898 and 1902 respectively.

It is a time of change and fierce regionalism in Spain. The people express themselves by hanging flags from their banisters, tagging the streets with grafitti, and marching in protest. For me and for the Boy, it is a time to observe how the desire for autonomy and the opposing desire for unity are defining themes of humanity. It puts our nightly battles over bedtime into some historic relief.