Asturian-American Migration Forum

There is an interesting story of "Andres Aragon" (a pseudonym), who, educated at the University of Grenada, left Spain to avoid retribution for being involved in the Republican cause. He worked in the US as a professor, and for a while as a Department of War Information (US government) employee. He was fired for refusing to translate a pro-Franco speech to be broadcast in Spain. Later when he was in the final steps of becoming a US citizen, he was told to reenter the country from Canada. Unfortunately, the House Un-American Activities Committee declared him to be a communist. He was arrested in Canada and sent to jail in Seattle. After a year supporters from his university were able to arrange his release and citizenship.

Later "Aragon" said he wasn't bitter. He still preferred to live and die in the US. "My family stayed [in Spain], my brother and sister, and it was hard for me to talk to them. I found that the psychology of the people is very much changed, the character of the people. It is not the people I knew as Spaniards, and it is no wonder. They lived through such terrible times -- and human beings, they get accustomed to everything. If you are forced to live like that, it becomes a habit. To change all of a sudden, it is not easy. That country under Franco made me sick. I felt much closer to the American people than that type of life, and I would never go back to live under any type of lack of freedom, lack of dignity."

Source:
June Namias, First Generation: In the Words of Twentieth Century American Immigrants (Boston: Beacon Press, 1978), pp. 99-109, quoted in a book written for high schoolers, Coming to America: Immigrants from Southern Europe by Gladys Nadler Rips (New York: Delacorte Press, 1981), p. 120-23.

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Hay una interesante historia de "Andres Aragón" (un seudónimo), quien, educado en la Universidad de Granada en España, dejó de España para evitar represalias por estar involucrado en la causa republicana. Trabajó en los EE.UU. como profesor, y por un tiempo como un empleado del Departamento de Información de la Guerra (gobierno de EE.UU.). De ese trabajo fue despedido por negarse a traducir un discurso a favor de Franco para difusión en España. Luego cuando estaba en las etapas finales de convertirse en ciudadano de EE.UU., se le dijo que vuelva a entrar el país desde Canadá. Lamentablemente, el Comité de la Cámara de Actividades en Contra de América le declaró comunista. Fue detenido en Canadá y enviado a la cárcel en Seattle. Después de un año sus seguidores de la universidad fueron capaces de obtener su libertad y la ciudadanía.

Más tarde "Aragón" dijo que no se amarga. Todavía prefirió vivir y morir en los EE.UU. "Mi familia permaneció [en España], mi hermano y mi hermana, y para mí es difícil hablar con ellos. Descubrí que la psicología de la gente está muy cambiado, el carácter de las personas. No es la gente que conoció como los españoles, y no me extraña. Vivieron durante esos tiempos terribles -- y los seres humanos, que se acostumbran a todo. Si se ven obligados a vivir así, se convierte en un hábito. Para cambiar de repente, no es fácil. Ese país bajo Franco me hizo enfermo. Me sentí mucho más íntimo al pueblo de los Estados Unidos de que ese tipo de vida, y nunca volvería a vivir bajo cualquier tipo de falta de libertad, o falta de dignidad."

Fuente:
June Namias, First Generation: In the Words of Twentieth Century American Immigrants (Boston: Beacon Press, 1978), pp. 99-109, citado en un libro escrito por alumnos de instituto, Coming to America: Immigrants from Southern Europe by Gladys Nadler Rips (New York: Delacorte Press, 1981), p. 120-23.

Thanks, Art. That would make an interesting discussion. I find Andrés Aragón's expression "lack of dignity" very offensive. What does he know about how it feels to be defeated by a brutal fascist force, having to look in the face of those who killed, maimed, jailed or raped your loved ones, day in and day out, without hope of ever seeing them punished?
My mom was only a little girl that was regularly pulled out of the bread line by life-long neighbours for being "red" and whenever the priest passed by their house he looked in the window and said: "para vosotros se está cociendo un bollo" (there's a loaf cooking in the oven for you - meaning that they had a punishment coming).
Day in and day out, for years and years, and no one has been punished. When you have no freedom and no food for your children, dignity is a luxury you can't afford.
Even so, I have seen a great deal of dignity, incredible courage and open defiance in the Asturian coalfields. In fact, it was the Asturian miners' strike in 1962 ("la Huelgona"), that put the Franco regime against the ropes and forced Industry Minister Solís to personally come to Asturias and negotiate, after the Guardia Civil and the army failed to crush them.

Terechu, thanks for responding. To some degree you and "Aragon" are saying the same thing. You and he both despised the conditions Spaniards were forced to live under: the indignity of being forced to live under a brutal dictatorship.

Although he said that dictatorship changed his family and Spaniards in general, he also clearly stated that he understood why the change was necessary for survival. He didn't mention the anti-Franco resistance. Perhaps he was unaware of it or was disappointed by the limited options for resistance. Or perhaps his family wasn't resisting.

If he left as a young man, which is likely, his political vision of Spain may have been arrested in an idealistic vision of "the Republic." His family had necessarily moved beyond idealism. An idealist would have trouble accepting the changes, but he didn't have to because he could return the the US. (That last part would troubling if he were judging Spaniards, but I don't think he was.)

For me, his main contribution is simply that he was away long enough that he could easily compare the marked differences at two horribly different points in time.

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Terechu, gracias por responder. En cierta medida, tú y "Aragón" están de acuerdo. Estáis despreciado las condiciones abajo que los españoles se vieron obligados a vivir: la indignidad de verse obligados a vivir bajo una dictadura brutal.

Aunque dijo que la dictadura ha cambiado a su familia y a los españoles en general, también expuso que el cambio fue necesario para la supervivencia. No mencionó la lucha de resistencia contra Franco. Tal vez no lo conociera o se encontrara decepcionada por las opciones tan limitadas para la resistencia. O quizás su familia no resistiera.

Si dejó como joven, lo que es probable, su visión política de España puede haber sido detenido en una visión idealista de "la República". Su familia necesariamente se había movido más allá del idealismo. Un idealista tendería dificultad en aceptar esos cambios, pero no tuvo que hacerlo porque podía retornar en el los EE.UU. (Esta última parte sería preocupante si juzgó a los españoles, pero no creo.)

Para mí, su contribución principal es simplemente que fue fuera lo suficientemente largo para que pudo comparar fácilmente las diferencias marcadas en los dos puntos en el tiempo terriblementes distintos.