Francesc Layret
Encyclopedia
Francesc Layret i Foix was a nationalist and republican Catalan
politician and lawyer. He was assassinated in 1920 following the mass detention of several of his colleagues and other left-wing politicians and union leaders.
Layret was a democrat, republican, Catalan nationalist and defender of social justice
. His commitment to the reality of his time and of Catalonia
led him to collaborate with the working-class
movement and the libertarian movement, helping to make Barcelona internationally known as the "rose of fire" for his role of avant-guard in the fight against oppression and exploitation.
In 1902 he was part of the group founding the Popular Encyclopedic Cultural Association, and presided over the first Organizing Commission and drawing up of the first Statutes. He participated in it actively and later presided over it during 1906-1907. As a lawyer the union majority and that grouped the most combative workers participated in numerous processes of social character
defending the workers, especially of the CNT
.
Layret was elected town councilor of the Town Council of Barcelona for the Republican Union. He was appointed president of the Commission of Treasury and drew up and implemented the Budget of the Reform. With this budget he achieved a saving of two million pesetas with which in 1908 he prepared and defended the Budget of Culture for the creation of municipal schools offering modern, lay and mixed education. The Budget was passed by the Town Council, in spite of the opposition of the rightwing parties, but would finally not be implemented as it was vetoed by the Regional Government.
He participated in Solidaritat Catalana and, together with other dissidents from the Lliga Regionalista, in 1906 founded the Centre Nacionalista Republicà, which later joined the Unió Federal Nacionalista Republicana. In 1917 he was one of the founders of the Partit Republicà Català and in 1919 was elected deputy for Sabadell in the Cortes Generales
in Madrid, in representation of this party.
Of his most noteworthy speeches in parliament is one in which he denounced the repressive situation that the Catalan proletariat were suffering after the strike of the manufacturer Canadenca in 1919 and another he gave in 1920, as a defender of peace at the presentation of the Budget of War.
Catalan people
The Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
politician and lawyer. He was assassinated in 1920 following the mass detention of several of his colleagues and other left-wing politicians and union leaders.
Layret was a democrat, republican, Catalan nationalist and defender of social justice
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
. His commitment to the reality of his time and of Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
led him to collaborate with the working-class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
movement and the libertarian movement, helping to make Barcelona internationally known as the "rose of fire" for his role of avant-guard in the fight against oppression and exploitation.
Biography
Francesc Layret was born in Barcelona on 10 July 1880. A paralysis as a child left him crippled for the rest of his life. A brilliant student, he studied for two university degrees at the same time, those of Laws and of Philosophy and Letters, obtaining his doctorate in 1905, with the maximum qualification.In 1902 he was part of the group founding the Popular Encyclopedic Cultural Association, and presided over the first Organizing Commission and drawing up of the first Statutes. He participated in it actively and later presided over it during 1906-1907. As a lawyer the union majority and that grouped the most combative workers participated in numerous processes of social character
Social character
The social character is the central basic concept of the analytic social psychology of Erich Fromm. It describes the formation of the shared character structure of the people of a society or a social class according to their way of life and the socially typical expectations and functional...
defending the workers, especially of the CNT
CNT
-Buildings:* Canadian National Tower, or CN Tower, a communications and observation tower in Toronto, Ontario, Canada-Businesses:* Cantiere Navale Triestino , an Italian shipbuilding company founded in 1908 and renamed Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico Monfalcone in 1929-Non-profit organizations:*...
.
Layret was elected town councilor of the Town Council of Barcelona for the Republican Union. He was appointed president of the Commission of Treasury and drew up and implemented the Budget of the Reform. With this budget he achieved a saving of two million pesetas with which in 1908 he prepared and defended the Budget of Culture for the creation of municipal schools offering modern, lay and mixed education. The Budget was passed by the Town Council, in spite of the opposition of the rightwing parties, but would finally not be implemented as it was vetoed by the Regional Government.
He participated in Solidaritat Catalana and, together with other dissidents from the Lliga Regionalista, in 1906 founded the Centre Nacionalista Republicà, which later joined the Unió Federal Nacionalista Republicana. In 1917 he was one of the founders of the Partit Republicà Català and in 1919 was elected deputy for Sabadell in the Cortes Generales
Cortes Generales
The Cortes Generales is the legislature of Spain. It is a bicameral parliament, composed of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate . The Cortes has power to enact any law and to amend the constitution...
in Madrid, in representation of this party.
Of his most noteworthy speeches in parliament is one in which he denounced the repressive situation that the Catalan proletariat were suffering after the strike of the manufacturer Canadenca in 1919 and another he gave in 1920, as a defender of peace at the presentation of the Budget of War.