Unions speaking out on issues as contentious as Israel-Palestine is nothing new. They have a long history of staking international positions on everything from apartheid to the Vietnam War.
From left to right: Dutch director Joris Ivens, Ernest Hemingway and Ludwig Renn, chief of staff in the International Brigades, in a photo taken at the beginning of 1937, during the Spanish Civil War.
Cassowary Colorizations/Wikimedia Commons
The worst years of the Spanish post-war constituted a veritable famine during which the purchasing power of the population fell drastically and thousands of deaths from starvation were recorded.
A woman hugs a Polish volunteer before he crosses the border to go and fight against Russian forces.
AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu
According to some reports, thousands of people from around the world are signing up to fight on behalf of Ukraine. But comparisons to the Spanish Civil War’s International Brigades are misguided.
The new tower stands completed, to the left, with its summit star in place.
Petr Tran | Shutterstock
Barcelona’s fabled basilica recently celebrated the completion of its first tower with a giant star. But as at every stage in its history, not everyone is pleased.
George Orwell’s writings have left a lasting imprint on American thought and culture.
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George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” was an instant success when it was first published. His writings on totalitarianism and socialism continue to be relevant today.
The liberation of Yugoslavs and Jews from an Italian concentration camp on the Adriatic island of Rab, 8 Sept 1943.
Elvira Kohn/Croatian History Museum
Artists have long tackled global issues, from war to human rights. While Picasso’s celebrated Guernica may not have stopped the Spanish Civil War (or any war), art still holds value, as witness and as truth teller.
A young girl wearing the Spanish flag (right) walks with another young girl wearing an ‘estelada,’ or independence flag.
AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti