Tribute to Federico García Lorca
The event, filled with poetry and memory, took place on the International Day of Cultural Insurgency, proclaimed in 2019 in Monte Hermoso, Argentina.
Every 18th of August, this day brings together poets and artists from around the globe in defence of human rights and solidarity among peoples.
Approximately three hundred people gathered at San Telmo Park (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria), in front of the Military Government building, to pay homage to Federico García Lorca on the 89th anniversary of his execution.
A Call for Resistance
The gathering at San Telmo was not merely an act of remembrance; it was a proclamation of the word as resistance.
It was recalled that Lorca was murdered in 1936 for what he represented: freedom, creativity, justice, and diversity—values that remain pertinent and are still confronted with attempts to silence them.
Remembering Lives Silenced
The event also paid tribute to Palestinian poets and artists killed in Gaza, including Refaat Alareer, whose voice has emerged as a symbol of hope and resistance.
Honour was also given to Sahrawi poets and others from colonised lands, who, like Lorca, were silenced by violence, yet whose work remains alive.
Voices of Remembrance
The homage featured the participation of eighteen poets and artists who gave voice to the memory of Lorca: Rosa Halabi, Agustín Millares Cantero, Alberto Blaudi, Nadia Jiménez Castro, Benkomo Nuez, Echedey Medina, Fernando Santana, Javier Cabrera, José Miguel Junco, José Orive, Luis Piernavieja, Marichu Fernández, Miguel Ángel Buigues, Ana Gloria Sánchez, Tazarte Sánchez Moreno, Paqui Santana, José Mario Padilla, and Bachir Ahmed.
A Shared Memory
Additionally, artist Bianca created an ephemeral mural as an artistic gesture of shared memory.
The day concluded with a unanimous cry that linked Lorca’s legacy to current struggles: “Long live the Republic!”
