Controversy over a Catalanophobic display at a Barcelona City Council event

BarcelonaA performance against the racial, gender, origin, and class discrimination that discriminates against Catalan and its speakers. This paradox occurred on Tuesday, as if that weren't enough, at the presentation of the Barcelona Discrimination Observatory 2024 Report, which showed that racism, gender, health, LGBTQ+ orientation, and, fifthly, the Catalan language are the main reasons for discrimination. At a public event held by Barcelona City Council, space was given to the amateur company Teatro Sin Papeles, made up of migrant women of Latin American origin, to perform a fragment of their show. Those LatinasIt turned out that the fragment ridiculed Catalan speakers and denounced—in Spanish—situations such as doctors speaking Catalan, jobs requiring the country's language, or the use of Catalan in reception centers.

— There are some parts of the report I don't understand, could you please explain them to me?
—Everything you need to know is in the report. If you don't speak Catalan, you should learn it.
"Speak Catalan!" all the actresses shout.

First, it was the Platform for the Language, which was present at the event because it is part of the Roundtable of Entities participating in the Report, who denounced these "supposedly humorous sketches that mock the linguistic rights of Catalan speakers and ridicule the defense of the language." For this reason, they have requested a rectification from the City Council, which had organized the event. At the same event, the Second Deputy Mayor, Maria Eugènia Gay, already expressed her regret for the situation.

This Thursday, Gay added to ARA that "this is the satirical impression of a specific group, within the framework of freedom of expression, but in no way the City Council's view." For the councilor, women contribute "their perspective on some of the situations they perceive as discriminatory" as newcomers. The Minister of Language Policy, Francesc Xavier Vila, stated that he felt "hurt" by the video, which "distorts reality" and "harms coexistence and social cohesion." ARA has attempted to contact the company.

Does Catalan discriminate, or vice versa?

—What's more important: that I speak Catalan or my health? That I speak Catalan or that I get a job? What's really important?

The personal situations exposed in the gags contrast with the reality shown by the surveys. The 2023 figures show that the majority of medical staff speak Spanish (50%) or bilingual, and only one in four doctors regularly speak only Catalan. In small businesses and large stores, the exclusive use of Catalan does not exceed 20%. In the State administration, 45% of communications are in Spanish. Furthermore, they collide with rights recognized by the Statute of Autonomy and the Constitution.

According to the 2024 Barcelona Discrimination Observatory Report, 99% of language discrimination reported by Barcelona residents is due to speaking Catalan. These discriminations have increased by 52% in one year, reaching 190, one every two days of the year. The Catalan government received 1,956 complaints or claims of violations of the linguistic rights of Catalan speakers during 2024: more than five official complaints a day for not being able to express themselves freely in Catalan.

Reactions on social networks

A video of the event was posted on YouTube at noon on Thursday, and reactions on social media were swift. For organizations working with the language, this is intolerable. Òmnium Cultural has also denounced the City Council's support for "the ridicule and disregard for the linguistic rights of Catalan speakers" and for people learning Catalan. Òmnium, Plataforma per la Llengua, Junts, and ERC are demanding an apology and public rectification from the council. Òmnium also demands that the Culture Commissioner, whom ERC agreed upon with Jaume Collboni at the beginning of the year, be finally created. Maria Eugènia Gay assures that the appointment of the commissioner will come soon and will serve to promote "new policies to reverse the decline in the regular use of Catalan in the city," just as they have already contributed to expanding the free Catalan courses offered to immigrants.