From packed sidewalks, from windows and crowded balconies draped with flags, and from precarious footholds on sycamore trees and lampposts, 300,000 Spaniards wept, cheered, waved, and threw flowers, confetti, and notes of thanks. It was October 28, 1938, and 2,500 troops from what was left of the International Brigades were marching down the Diagonal, one of Barcelona’s grand avenues, for an official farewell.  Along the boulevard were signs with the names of the battles in which the volunteers had fought.  The brigades had borne the brunt of so much combat that their soldiers had been killed at nearly three times the rate of the rest of the Republican army.

Many of the Internationals still in Spain were in hospitals, but men from 26 countries made it to the parade. The 200 Americans who marched included a handful of nurses from the medical detachment. The rest were men, who came along the avenue with blankets rolls slung over their right shoulders, the shabbiest of uniforms, and mismatched footgear. They walked nine abreast, sometimes ankle-deep in flowers.

From “Spain in Our Hearts,” by Adam Hochschild

About 2,800 young American men and women risked their lives for a democratic Spain. They defied the US government’s prohibition and fought under appalling conditions. Most died in combat, their blood watering the fields of Spain.  They came from most walks of life—college professors, teachers, writers, doctors, nurses, engineers, whites, blacks. Their sacrifice was not in vain.

As a Spaniard and an American citizen, I hold a special place in my heart for the Abraham Lincoln Brigade’s volunteers. Their generation has already passed away. But quite a few families will still remember these brave men and women at their Thanksgiving dinner tables.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends and readers,

Louis Villalba