OVERVIEW SPAIN IN FREEDOM: 50 YEARS
1975-2025, Fifty Years On:
Celebrating by thinking and thinking by celebrating
Carmina Gustrán Loscos Commissioner for the Commemoration of“ Spain in Freedom: 50 years”
20 November 2025 marks the fiftieth anniversary of Francisco Franco’ s death. At the Commission of“ Spain in Freedom: 50 years”, we focus on the possibilities that his passing created, on the long and difficult journey towards regaining freedom and democracy. In 2025, we remember the beginning of that collective achievement; we celebrate the prosperous, diverse and democratic nation that we have become. Also, we would like to invite all citizens to join us in reflecting on the future, on what kind of country and what kind of democracy we aspire to build together.
Commemorating 1975 is not about looking at the dictator, but rather looking at ordinary citizens, at the women and men who held strikes when they were forbidden, who turned parishes and neighbourhood associations into spaces of liberty, who opened classrooms and workshops in a country that wanted to live in freedom. It is to remember the thousands who died during and after the end of the dictatorship, victims of political violence— in prisons and summary executions, in demonstrations and violent attacks, in police custody and victims of terrorism. Fifty years later, the best tribute to that civic energy is not a complacent elegy, but an invitation to celebrate by thinking and to think by celebrating.
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Observing Memories ISSUE 9