SOCIAL ACTIVISTS from Spain

Top 5

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Spanish Social Activists of all time. This list of famous Spanish Social Activists is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity.

1. Buenaventura Durruti (1896 - 1936)

With an HPI of 70.70, Buenaventura Durruti is the most famous Spanish Social Activist.  His biography has been translated into 44 different languages on wikipedia.

José Buenaventura Durruti Dumange (Spanish: [xoˈse βwenaβenˈtuɾa ðuˈruti ðuˈmaŋge]; 14 July 1896 – 20 November 1936) was a Spanish anarcho-syndicalist militant and a leading figure in Spanish anarchism before and during the Spanish Civil War. As a prominent member of the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT) and the Federación Anarquista Ibérica (FAI), Durruti was a key protagonist in the Spanish Revolution of 1936 and is remembered as a hero and martyr in the anarchist movement. Originally a mechanic and trade unionist from León, Durruti was radicalized by state repression of the labor movement. In the 1920s, he became a leader of the anarchist affinity group Los Solidarios, which carried out bank robberies, termed "expropriations", to fund their revolutionary activities, as well as assassinations of those they held responsible for the oppression of the working class. Forced into exile, he coordinated militant activities from France and engaged in a series of expropriations across Latin America with the group Los Errantes. After returning to Spain with the proclamation of the Republic in 1931, he became one of the primary organizers of the CNT's insurrectionist wing, leading several unsuccessful uprisings for which he was repeatedly imprisoned and deported. At the outbreak of the Civil War in July 1936, Durruti was a key figure in defeating the Nationalist military uprising in Barcelona. He subsequently organized and led the Durruti Column, one of the largest and most famous anarchist militias, which fought on the Aragon front. There, alongside combat operations, he helped implement libertarian communism in the liberated territories. In November 1936, as Nationalist forces laid siege to Madrid, he led his column to the capital to aid in its defense. On 19 November, he was mortally wounded by a gunshot while fighting in the Casa de Campo park. The circumstances of his death are disputed, with historians debating whether he was killed by enemy fire, friendly fire, or treachery. Durruti's death was a significant blow to the anarchist movement and the Republican war effort. His funeral procession in Barcelona drew hundreds of thousands of mourners in one of the largest public demonstrations in the city's history. He became an enduring symbol of the revolutionary spirit of Spanish anarchism, praised for his ideological conviction, leadership, and personal dedication to fighting for a classless, stateless society. His legacy influenced later anarchist groups, such as the Friends of Durruti Group, and he remains one of the most iconic figures of the Spanish Civil War.

2. Salvador Puig Antich (1948 - 1974)

With an HPI of 65.17, Salvador Puig Antich is the 2nd most famous Spanish Social Activist.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Salvador Puig Antich (Catalan pronunciation: [səlβəˈðo ˌpudʒ‿ənˈtik]; 30 May 1948 – 2 March 1974) was a Spanish militant anarchist from Catalonia. His execution for involvement in a bank robbery and shooting a police officer dead became a cause célèbre in Francoist Spain for Catalan autonomists, pro-independence supporters, and anarchists. After fighting the Spanish state with the militant organization Iberian Liberation Movement in the early 1970s, he was convicted and executed by garrote for the death of a police officer during a shoot-out. Far left-wing Catalans viewed Puig Antich's judicial death as symbolic retribution for the region's fight for self-government, and his name became commonplace in Barcelona. The incident inspired works by Catalan artists Joan Miró and Antoni Tàpies, and a satirical play by the Catalan theater group Els Joglars. The 2006 film Salvador depicts Puig Antich's time on death row. After the Spanish Supreme Court declined an effort to review the execution, an Argentine court adopted the case under universal jurisdiction in 2013.

3. Lucio Urtubia (1931 - 2020)

With an HPI of 61.16, Lucio Urtubia is the 3rd most famous Spanish Social Activist.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Lucio Urtubia Jiménez (1931–2020) was a Spanish anarchist who carried out a campaign of bank robberies and forgeries during the 1960s and 1970s. He became an anarchist while in exile in France, where he met Quico Sabaté and carried out a number of bank robberies with him. He then forged US dollars, as part of a plan to destabilise the economy of the United States, and fake passports to aid refugees fleeing repressive states. His largest scheme involved defrauding Citibank of tens of millions of dollars in forged traveller's cheques, which he used to fund guerrilla groups.

4. Enric Duran (b. 1976)

With an HPI of 44.93, Enric Duran is the 4th most famous Spanish Social Activist.  Her biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Enric Duran Giralt (born 23 April 1976, Vilanova i la Geltrú) also known as Robin Banks or the Robin Hood of the Banks is a Spanish-Catalan anticapitalist activist and a founding member of the Catalan Integral Cooperative (CIC - Cooperativa Integral Catalana) and Faircoop. On September 17, 2008, he publicly announced that he had 'robbed' dozens of Spanish banks of nearly half a million euros as part of a political action to denounce what he termed the predatory capitalist system. From 2006 to 2008, Duran took out 68 commercial and personal loans from a total of 39 banks with no guarantees or property as collateral. He had no intention of repaying the debts, and used the money to finance various anti-capitalist movements. In 2008, Duran released both an online article entitled "I have "robbed" 492,000 euros from those who rob us the most, in order to denounce them and build alternatives for society" (translated), and an online video, each explaining what he had done and that he had left the country to view the reaction and consider his next move. This was also published in the free magazine Crisis, in Catalan, of which 200,000 copies were printed and distributed by volunteers throughout Catalonia. A second newspaper, We can! Live Without Capitalism was distributed on March 17, 2009, and a third, We want! on September 17, 2009.

5. Pablo Hasél (b. 1988)

With an HPI of 42.37, Pablo Hasél is the 5th most famous Spanish Social Activist.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Pablo Rivadulla Duró (born 9 August 1988), known artistically as Pablo Hasél, is a Catalan rapper, writer, poet, and political activist. His songs and actions, often controversial and in support of far-left politics, have led to a number of criminal charges and convictions in his country. In June 2020 he was sentenced to six months in prison for pushing and spraying washing-up liquid at a TV3 journalist and to two and a half years for kicking and threatening a witness in the trial of a policeman. He was imprisoned on 16 February 2021 on a nine-month sentence for recidivism in insulting the Spanish monarchy, insulting the Spanish army and police forces, and praising terrorism and banned groups. This has been labeled an attack on free speech by certain groups both in Spain and overseas, including Amnesty International, and led to numerous protests and riots.