Street political violence in Spain: the story doesn't match the videos

Who attacks whom: the story that doesn't fit the videos

Every time a video of an assault at a political information stall appears, the narrative gets reshuffled within hours. The established version takes for granted a clear source of politically motivated street violence. The opposing side, increasingly loud, claims that many of these episodes are staged or outright false. The figure doing the rounds —nine out of ten— comes from no official statistic, and that is precisely the problem.

Two assaults within the same days

In Sant Cugat, a VOX information tent was reportedly attacked, according to a video circulated on social media. In Oviedo, two family doctors were reportedly beaten, according to the public complaint of a third party. The two episodes overlapped on the calendar, and each side picked its own to tell the story. On top of this, it is reported that a 70-year-old man was admitted with a concussion after an incident at an information stall.

«Hunting neo-Nancy» as a label

Some argue the term works as an alibi to justify assaults that would have nothing to do with legitimate self-defence. On the other side weighs the argument that these episodes do exist, are on video, and admit no excuse. The discussion, as usual, ended up drifting elsewhere: the rise of China and the global distribution of power. Because when the subject is uncomfortable, something bigger to talk about always shows up.

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None of these assaults has a public official count that would allow fact to be separated from propaganda. How many would survive a minimally rigorous filter? Nobody has published one.