Salvador Illa 'profoundly respects' George Floyd protests, but urges 'responsibility'

Gatherings in Valencia, Barcelona, Madrid, Málaga, Murcia and elsewhere in the country have been taking place in the past week, with manifestos read out and demonstrators going down on one knee with a fist raised – the international anti-racism posture.

The death of 46-year-old black American civilian George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis, USA has sparked protests worldwide, despite the pandemic – in Madrid alone, around 3,000 people marched through the streets carrying banners.

Illa says: “Despite my profound respect for any democratic demonstration, I want to remind you all that the virus is still out there and to ask for those who demonstrate to act responsibly.”

Most of the footage of the 'Black Lives Matter' protests seems to show members of the public wearing masks and keeping at least 1.5 metres apart, but in some cases during these and other demonstrations – such as the one convened by far-right Vox against Spain's government and its decision to put the country in lockdown – pictures have shown protesters getting too close to each other.

Spain's black population is, statistically, very small, especially in comparison with that of the USA or Spain's neighbouring nations, Portugal, France and the UK.

Some are originally from the only sub-Saharan African country which was a Spanish colony – Equatorial Guinea – and the majority of the black community in Spain, according to ethnographic studies, are first-generation Africans.

They are typically Senegalese, Nigerian and Gambian, although other countries south of the Sahara are represented due to Spain's being one of the main entry points to Europe and the only European country sharing a land border with the African continent.

'Ethnic minorities' in Spain are commonplace, although most of these are from Asia, particularly China and the formerly-Spanish Philippines (around 6%) as well as Pakistan; north African nations such as Morocco and Algeria (some 18%), and Latin America (over 36%).

Only around 21% of the immigrant population is of European origin, of whom about 54% are from western and south-western Europe and the rest, from eastern and north-eastern Europe, including Russia and the Baltic States.

Open racism is – anecdotally, at least – very rare in Spain, and all ethnic and foreign communities and cultures mingle peacefully with each other.

Support and sympathy for African migrants – many of whom live in very precarious conditions if they make it into the country and are not retained in a border migrant centre – is very widespread in Spain, as seen by the fact that the protesters in its major cities during the Black Lives Matter marches were predominantly white, and also by the fact that society in general has long been pushing for its government to take in more refugees, shut migrant centres and make it easier for Africans who reach Spanish soil to get residence, healthcare and jobs.

Expats of all nationalities, including Europeans and those from Anglo-Saxon countries, generally report feeling very comfortable among Spanish society and being treated as 'one of the gang'.

The above photograph shows the recent demonstration in Madrid's central Puerta del Sol square – famous for being a gathering point for the New Year's Eve chimes – and a protester holding up a banner reading, 'I can't breathe'.

These were apparently George Floyd's last words as he 'begged for mercy' when a police officer, according to reports, knelt on his neck until he suffocated.

Witnesses to the incident said Floyd was 'cooperating at all times' with the police, did not show any resistance or aggression, and that his only 'crime' had been paying for groceries in a supermarket with a cheque which bounced due to insufficient funds in his account.