El Trenc is not touched... by a 'like'

Last Sunday, July 5, we lived another historic day. El Trenc must not be touched. Not before, not now, not ever. On the way there, past Son Catlar, a devastating string of chalets follows every two quarters, all cut from the same pattern. Already in La Ràpita, the terraced houses link up so cyclically that they seem infinite. Cranes are in operation. And in between, plots of land in a chapel waiting patiently for the arrival of developers while they see their immediate surroundings destroyed. But it seems even that is not enough.10,000 people joined hands on the beach of La Ràpita. And of course, when so many people gather, it's normal for many things to happen. The most striking, without a doubt, was the presence of Francisca Porquer, the mayor of Campos, who wanted to be physically present at the gathering. She could have chosen to blend in with the crowd, or to stand in the front row and listen carefully to the reading. But it seems the mayor is naturally meddlesome and wanted to place herself right next to Sebastià Alzamora and Tonina Siquier during the reading of the manifesto. We already knew that in Campos they are close-knit, but not that they had such an eager mayor. Like.The machine gun nests painted with verses that have served as a backdrop for thousands of ‘selfies’ in recent years, now appeared with graffiti in favor of the defense of this natural space as valuable as it is emblematic. It is already known that the PP and Vox are parties very sensitive to historical memory and their followers have raised hell over these acts which they have described as vandalism. In fact, our public television only found it pertinent to publish a short video with the graffiti, without mentioning that exactly 10,000 Majorcans had passed by there to form a human chain for nothing. Like.And even more things happened, such as the presence of Madò Farta, this Mallorcan peasant woman, with a skirt, bodice and overskirt and a plastic skull face that looks like it was bought at a Chinese bazaar, who walks in front of the Cathedral, sings La Balanguera and cleans the dirt from the Mallorcan beaches. The protesting bathers recognized her and petted her. Many knew her from the Instagram network, where with more than 5,000 followers she has become visible and viral. Like.But neither the Obregonian performance of Mayor Porquer, nor the graffiti on the bunkers that served as a finger to avoid looking at the moon, nor the originally rebellious Mallorca of Madò Farta managed to alleviate the most important absence of the day. We did not expect President Prohens, so sure of wanting to protect Trenc. Nor Councillor Simonet, who warned us with a funny cap from the water that the left is a manipulative and malevolent entity.The youth was missing. There were plenty of historic, endearing, gray-haired, hat-wearing, pot-bellied, and wrinkled people. More or less everyone greeted each other. It is a singular community, this one of counter-current Mallorca that feels so comfortable when it comes to firmly opposing the policies of the Mallorcan right. Gabriel Cañellas, Jaume Matas, José Ramón Bauzá, and now Marga Prohens, are people before whom it has always been good to stand up.But where were the young people? Not the forty-somethings (each time there are people who feel young at 40), nor the thirty-somethings. Where were the 20-year-olds who are supposed to change tomorrow's world? Where were the university and high school kids who are starting to walk within the world of militancy and revolution? It would be very easy for the writer to fall into the framework of customs and caricature. We could say ‘selfie’, ‘swimming pool’, ‘sailboat’, ‘bikini’, ‘Much’ and ‘wow’. We could also say ‘mediterraneously’, to encompass it all. Or ‘the island’, to deconstruct ourselves definitively. But we won't say it.The physiognomy of Mallorca has changed from green to blue. And so have the interests and idiosyncrasies of Majorcans. Beyond that, however, there is a tangible generational bias. 65% of young people in Mallorca are "little" or "not at all" interested in institutional politics. Only 10% of young islanders have participated in demonstrations and protest events in the last year. It is perceived that continuous militancy (periodic assemblies, maintenance of structures, organization of actions and events of various kinds, payment of fees...) is not used today. On the other hand, this protest is raised on social networks, either by publishing directly, or by republishing or liking. And if they have to participate in anything outside of virtuality, they do so punctually and always from outside any organizational structure.The delay we all have is whether this new form of militancy will be enough to confront the policies of the right in the country and the world, to position ourselves forcefully against actions that we may consider excessive, unjust, racist, destructive of the territory, anti-Mallorcan, and xenophobic. Or if we are facing another tool of the system to keep us fooled in front of screens and far from the reality that crushes us every day.