Professor Crameris Goodbye, Spain? marks a milestone in scholarship in Catalunyas long and turbulent history. Whether the title of this book proves to be prophetic remains to be seen. Perhaps Catalunya will be granted the right to decide its future in 2014, or perhaps this will be denied, though one hopes not through military intervention. But irrespective of the outcome of the forthcoming consultation, and the subsequent political engagement, the issue of independence is now so ingrained in the contemporary Catalan psyche (and indeed in its equally strongly felt rejection by parts of mainland Spain) that its potential could mark and sour internal Spanish politics for decades to come. From the Preface by Geoff Cowling, HM Consul General, Barcelona 2002/2005
Support for independence in the Autonomous Community of Catalonia has risen significantly since 2005. Opinion polls confirm that the idea of holding a legally-binding referendum on independence is now supported by 80% of Catalans. Many commentators on nationalism in Western Europe had come to the conclusion that there was no serious threat to the established nation-states from secessionism within their borders. In The Identity of Nations (2007), Montserrat Guibernau wrote that decentralisation tames secessionism, both by offering significant power and resources to the national minorities it seeks to accommodate and by enticing regional political elites with the power, prestige and perks associated with devolution. Scott Greer, in Nationalism and Self-Government (2007), wrote that secession seems unlikely in the Catalan case because the regional political elites have too much to lose by such a move and are most concerned with winning further autonomy in specific areas that stabilise their own hold on regional power a conclusion called into question by the recent radicalisation in Catalan politics and civil society.
Causes for these striking changes in public sentiment include changes in the Catalan political landscape since 2003, problems of infrastructure, public apathy with the political process, disillusionment with the Spanish government, a rise in anti-Catalan feeling from other Spaniards (and a rise in anti-Spanish feeling among Catalans), the effects of the global financial crisis, and the bumpy ride experienced by Catalonias new Statute of Autonomy. One notable change has been a shift in the dominant discourse of Catalan nationalism from concerns regarding language, culture and identity toward the political and economic welfare of Catalans. These political and economic discourses have overlaid rather than replaced cultural aspects.
Kathryn Crameri is Head of the School of Modern Languages and Cultures at the University of Glasgow. Her published work covers Catalan culture, identity and nationalism, and includes Catalonia: National Identity and Cultural Policy 19802003 (University of Wales Press, 2008). Goodbye, Spain? brings this experience to bear on the crucial issue of the recent and unexpected rise in support for Catalan independence.
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Copyright Kathryn Crameri, 2014.
Published in the Sussex Academic e-Library, 2014.
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Crameri, Kathryn.
Goodbye, Spain? : the question of independence for Catalonia / Kathryn Crameri.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-84519-659-2 (hb : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-1-78284-163-0 (e-pub)
ISBN 978-1-78284-164-7 (e-mobi)
ISBN 978-1-78284-165-4 (e-pdf)
1. Catalonia (Spain)HistoryAutonomy and independence movements.
2. NationalismSpainCataloniaHistory21st century. I. Title.
DP302.C68C73 2014
320.1509467dc23
2014005776
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