Sociedades Hispanas Confederadas (SHC)

Only eight days after Francisco Franco's uprising, about 200 U.S. Hispanic cultural and mutual aid societies came together in what became known as the Sociedades Hispanas Confederadas (SHC, Confederation of Hispanic Soci­eties).

Through the publication of Frente Popular (1936-1939) and España Libre (1939-1977), the SHC remained devoted to its antifascist cause throughout the Franco regime. Although the SHC grew to 65,000 members at its height, it maintained close ties with anarchist and socialist networks, which often shared their membership. Many of the thousands of Spanish workers who arrived in the United States around the turn of the twentieth century brought radical traditions rooted in their homeland. They created scores of cultural and mutual aid societies in cities, rural areas, and mining communities across the United States, fueling anti-authoritarian and emancipatory practices that foregrounded the creation of culture and collective knowledge from below. During and after the Spanish Civil War, they built support networks for refugees and published periodicals that reported on the war and denounced Francoist repression. 

Map of SHC

Created by Ian Maloney

Black States: 50+ SHC groups

Dark-Grey States:10-49 SHC groups

Grey States: 2-9 SHC groups

Pale-Gray States: 1 SHC group 

How to cite the project: Montse Feu. "SHC." Fighting Fascist Spain --The Exhibits. Recovering the US Hispanic Literary Heritage Digital Collections. http://usldhrecovery.uh.edu/exhibits/show/fighting-fascist-spain--the-ex. Accessed [DATE].
Sociedades Hispanas Confederadas (SHC)