They were a group of nearly 3.000 american volunteers who came to Spain in 1937 to help the democratic elected government of the Republic of Spain against a group of fascist military rebels who had tried to take power by force. This failed coup d'etat was the inception of the Spanish Civil War, that lasted between 1936 and 1939, right before World War II.
In 1936, just months after the government of the Republic of Spain was formed, a group of rebel soldiers led by General Francisco Franco tried to take power by force. Franco was a fascist, so Mussolini and Hitler sent help in the form of supplies, weapons and soldiers to destroy those who supported the democratically elected government. The rest of world powers such as France, UK and the US signed a non-intervention agreement and, they did just not help the Republic, but also forbade any of its citizens to travel to Spain to fight.
This is when the Comintern organized the recruitment of volunteers from any country who wanted to go to Spain to fight in support of democracy and against fascism. This group of volunteers were called the International Brigades. In these brigades there were people from all over the planet: Canadian, British, Irish, French, Russian, Polish, German, Chinese, New Zealander,… There was even a Japanese and, of course, there were the US volunteers. So it’s no wonder the Spanish Civil War it’s sometimes referred to as the first battle of WWII.
It is estimated that volunteers, among whom there were not only soldiers, but also doctors, nurses, truck and ambulance drivers, etc., were around 2,800 and 3,000 people. The volunteers of the International Brigades were grouped according to their citizenship or language, and Americans were put in a battalion to which they christened the Lincoln Brigade.
The Lincoln brigade had volunteers from all social classes, religions and races. But in Spain there was no difference between them. No distinctions were made. Here were all brothers and sisters fighting side by side against fascism.
Among these volunteers were approximately 90 African Americans. Citizens who were frustrated and tired of living every day with discrimination, racism and intolerance in the US and for which fascism was the very representation of that evil.
Among these American volunteers was Oliver Law, a trade unionist and workers’ rights activist, who would go down in history as the first African American to command a fully integrated unit of Americans of different races. He is the protagonist of this story.
With your help, no matter how big or small, we can tell their story and reach more people. If you can’t become a sponsor of the project, help us spread the word, share the link to the campaign so everyone has their chance to help.
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