The 2011 May Spanish protests, also referred to as the 15-M Movement, Spanish revolution or Indignados (Spanish for outraged) are a series of demonstrations in Spain whose origin can be traced to social networks and the ¡Democracia Real Ya! (True Democracy Right Now!) civilian digital platform, along with 200 other small associations.
Starting on 15 May 2011 with an initial call in 58 Spanish cities,the series of peaceful protests demand a radical change in Spanish politics, as protesters don't consider themselves to be represented by any party nor favoured by the measures approved by politicians. The protests have been staged close to the municipal elections, to be held on May 22. The press has related them to the economic crisis, Stéphane Hessel's Time for Outrage!,the NEET troubled generation and current protests in the Middle East and North Africa, Greek, as well as the Icelandic protest and riots.
Even though protesters form a heterogeneous and ambiguous group, they share a strong rejection against Spanish politicians, the current two-party system in Spain between PSOE and PP and political corruption and a firm support for basic rights: home, work, culture, health, education.
A protester in Madrid with the hashtag #spanishrevolution in his banner. Social networks have played a decisive role in these demonstrations, but Twitter has been the most important by far, with hundreds of tweets per minute in critical moments and some hashtags becoming rapidly global trending topic, such as #DemocraciaRealYa, #NoLesVotes, #AcampadaSol or #NoNosVamos.
These protests have also appeared in a critical situation: Spanish youths are academically more prepared than ever before but they're facing a 50% youth unemployment, and 89% of Spaniards think political parties only care about themselves, according to Metroscopia. Protesters' purpose is to camp in cities' main squares until May 22.
There have also been several protests outside Spain: Braga, Coimbra, Faro, Lisboa and Porto in Portugal, Dublin in Ireland, Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Paris in France and London in the United Kingdom.
Even though protesters form a heterogeneous and ambiguous group, they share a strong rejection against Spanish politicians, the current two-party system in Spain between PSOE and PP and political corruption and a firm support for basic rights: home, work, culture, health, education.
A protester in Madrid with the hashtag #spanishrevolution in his banner. Social networks have played a decisive role in these demonstrations, but Twitter has been the most important by far, with hundreds of tweets per minute in critical moments and some hashtags becoming rapidly global trending topic, such as #DemocraciaRealYa, #NoLesVotes, #AcampadaSol or #NoNosVamos.
These protests have also appeared in a critical situation: Spanish youths are academically more prepared than ever before but they're facing a 50% youth unemployment, and 89% of Spaniards think political parties only care about themselves, according to Metroscopia. Protesters' purpose is to camp in cities' main squares until May 22.
There have also been several protests outside Spain: Braga, Coimbra, Faro, Lisboa and Porto in Portugal, Dublin in Ireland, Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Paris in France and London in the United Kingdom.
Video from Euronews:
No comments:
Post a Comment