Barcelona's Centre de Cultura Contemporània (CCCB) annually honours author George Orwell, recognising his deep connection to the city and his commitment to social justice. This year, the commemoration on 12 May 2026, focuses on the role of journalism in conflict zones, drawing parallels with Orwell's observations during the Spanish Civil War.
Orwell, whose real name was Eric Arthur Blair, arrived in Barcelona on 26 December 1936. He spent six months travelling between Catalonia and Aragon, fighting fascism, an experience that later inspired his 1938 novel, Homage to Catalonia. Initially intending to write about the unfolding events, Orwell quickly joined a militia group to defend the Second Spanish Republic against Franco's Nationalist forces.
His first impressions of Barcelona, an anti-fascist stronghold, were profound. The city reflected the complex divisions within the left, united against Franco but split on their vision for society. Upon his arrival, Barcelona was in the midst of an anarchist revolution, a fervour that had gripped the Catalan capital since the war's start.
Orwell's Revolutionary Barcelona Experience
Orwell recounted his first walk up Las Ramblas in Homage to Catalonia, noting, “It was the first time I had ever been in a town where the working class was in the saddle. Practically every building of any size had been seized by the workers and was draped with red flags or with the red and black flag of the Anarchists, [...] every shop and café had an inscription saying that it had been collectivized.” Within weeks, he left revolutionary Barcelona for the trenches in Aragon.
He joined the POUM (Workers’ Party of Marxist Unification) militia, an anti-Stalinist group, and was sent to the front line near Zaragoza and Huesca. There, he endured cold and miserable conditions for several months, fighting against fascism.
Return to a Changed City and Narrow Escapes
Orwell returned to Barcelona in May 1937, finding a city significantly changed. Underlying tensions erupted into five days of vicious infighting among leftist factions, starting on 3 May. The local government reclaimed control, ending the revolutionary experiment.
After surviving the street fighting, Orwell went back to the front, where a Francoist sniper shot him through the neck ten days later. The bullet narrowly missed his carotid artery. After weeks of recuperation, he returned to Barcelona for his final stay. He again narrowly escaped with his life, as the POUM was declared an illegal organisation and he became a fugitive. After weeks in hiding, Orwell fled back to England.
Once home, he started writing Homage to Catalonia, a raw and honest personal account of his observations and experiences. The book addressed the lies, manipulation, and political tyranny he witnessed from both the right and the left, laying groundwork for his celebrated novel, 1984.
Journalism's Role in Conflict Today
This year's CCCB commemoration features journalists Mariam Barghouti, Zeinab Salih, and Laila Al-Arian. They will reflect on journalism's role in conflict zones, the silences within global media, and the uneven distribution of international attention. Their discussion invites attendees to bear witness to contemporary events and tell stories that resist erasure, echoing Orwell's own journalistic spirit.
