Spain is home to some of the world’s largest and most successful worker-owned co-ops, but you might be surprised to learn that these businesses formed under dictatorship. During and after Spain’s brutal civil war, particularly hard-hit areas survived repression thanks to cooperation and local self-reliance. Some endured decades of authoritarian rule and in so doing built an economy — and a culture — that is fundamentally collaborative, caring, and connected to community.
As the U.S. faces its own authoritarian regime, there’s much to learn from Spain’s co-ops. That’s why we’re re-airing this 2020 report across public television and radio this week.
I first went to the Basque region, during Donald Trump’s first term, to learn about the Mondragón Federation. Created in 1956, it’s now the world’s largest industrial co-op with about 70,000 employees, including thousands overseas. “Business became viewed, for a generation or more, as a place for progressive people to express their values,” explained Fred Freundlich, a professor at Mondragón University, a university funded by the Federation. “It’s not enough on its own as a response to fascism or authoritarianism anywhere, but it is a significant part.”
Read the rest and watch the episode at Laura Flanders' Substack
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