Memories of War and the COVID-19 Crisis in Spain

Abstract

Spaniards born in a democracy have no recollection of living through war and what it entails. We can only access those memories via mediation, by listening to our relatives who were there, whose stories we become witnesses to, and which ultimately become our own collective witnessing. The remembrance of the Spanish Civil War passed on to us in this manner is a contested legacy, a complex combination of affects and mediated memories, coming from offline—as in conversations with our elders—and online—such as archival footage—resources. Experiencing war firsthand left indelible marks in our forebearers’ minds. Now the elderly must face this violent “war” and “postwar” rhetoric with the potential retraumatization it may cause. Not capable to understand why media and government officials alike call for heroes to resist and fight the crisis, a discourse heavily imbued with emotions and battlefront references does little to assuage citizens’ fears. Perpetual news reels on the number of dead per day worsen the psychological strain of a person in lockdown, akin to that of prison inmates, more so if that person endured an actual war and its aftermath. What might be done to lessen such harmful impacts? How can we change the narrative and make it more humane?

Final Year Undergraduate Students’ Representation of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Lockdown: Adaptability and Responsibility

“…The measures taken by countries facing the COVID-19 pandemic were, at least right after its outbreak, very different, ranging from stopping untested persons at the border, as was the case in Montenegro, to maintaining a relaxed attitude while waiting for herd immunity to take hold, as in Great Britain [36]. The efficiency of Spanish local and regional public administration in managing the first phases of the pandemic was undermined by bureaucracy [10], and the experience of civil war still present in the memories of older Spaniards imposed the cautionary use of war-related metaphors when describing the current pandemic context [37]. Social assistance in Australia would stand to gain from correlating the debates on minimum income with the COVID-19 socio-economic crisis [38].…”

“…The fear of contagion can stimulate solidarity and the feeling of belonging to the community of the entire mankind [4]. Crisis is an opportunity to see others in the same manner we see ourselves, namely as human beings holding the same rights and freedoms [37] and able to express our creativity [65]. The fear caused by the pandemic amplifies humor and makes people overly cautious [3].…”

“…Clear recommendations concerning courses of action and involvement should be formulated, and social distancing measures should not be threatening because of fear's limited efficiency [35]. The narratives on COVID-19 pandemic should support the human and community dimension of history [37]. Last but not the least, people enjoy humor, and its use by the social media creates joy and re-establishes relationships altered by social distancing [2].…”

“…Martínez García [37] indicates some students' initiative to archive the experience of the pandemic as a number of human stories and as an alternative to neutral news. Additionally, global lockdown can be considered an opportunity to obtain answers concerning any future social restrictions [20].…”