The brotherhoods, 1 - Jaime Martínez, 0

PalmThe first democratically elected mayor of Palma after the Franco dictatorship, Ramon Aguiló, found a bleak situation regarding the city's patron saint festival. He devised a plan that, in retrospect, proved brilliant: to bring together a series of top-tier solo artists and groups, all at the same time and free of charge. The results were immediate, and within a few years, the people of Palma were flocking to the streets to enjoy performances by their musical idols.

Over time, with the habit established and tens of thousands of people filling the streets, the quality of the performances declined. And that was to be expected. There was no longer any need to burn through the municipal budget if the public had already acquired the habit of partying on the night of the 19th. But over the years, this also sparked a debate among the more active citizens: does a festival based solely on concerts, followed by a bike ride the next day, make sense?

With the aim of revitalizing all of this, and copying models from other new festivals, a group of volunteers created the Brotherhood of Saint Sebastian, based in the legendary Can Vinagre bar in Palma. They invented a whole liturgy: irreverent, engaged with reality, and above all, fun and participatory. And in no time, the brotherhoods spread everywhere.

The concerts are now an appendage to the "all-day" party proclaimed by the brotherhoods. But this year, the mayor has made it perfectly clear. Their entirely political cancellation, within the framework of Feijóo's strategy of adding drama to a tragedy by going against Sánchez, was an unjustified decision. Revealing: either Palma revises its program or the popular festival will increasingly overshadow the official one.