The residents conquer Palma's Born with a blow of trempó and bread with oil

PalmaEl Born was the neighborhood's last night. Hundreds of Palma residents have conquered the promenade with lunch boxes, trempó, bread with oil, and a desire to share a table at the last Wednesday at the Llesca of the summer, a neighborhood gathering promoted by Brunzit that has turned one of the most emblematic and touristy spaces in the city into a large outdoor dinner for a few hours. The meeting was preceded by the controversial decision of the National Police to order restaurants in El Born to remove their terraces during the event, fearing that the gathering could lead to acts of "sabotage" or "direct confrontation" with the establishments, according to the information conveyed to the restaurateurs. Hours later, however, what filled the promenade were families, young people, children, and the elderly eating together and claiming the neighborhood use of public space.

The first thing that surprises upon arriving at El Born is that today it doesn't seem like El Born on any other August evening. The tables on the terraces have disappeared and the space usually occupied by restaurant customers has been cleared. In their place, there are groups sitting on the ground, on benches, or around improvised tables while music plays in the background and they dance a 'ball de bot'. A lunchbox open here, a loaf of bread there, a plate of trempó passing from one hand to another. Some have brought dinner from home and others have simply come wanting to share some time with others.

Around, however, the usual Born continues to be there. The windows of the luxury shops were lit, the big international brands illuminate the promenade and the surrounding streets continue to be full of visitors. In the midst of this setting, however, the scene is different: children playing, families having dinner and neighbours chatting. The contrast between the commercial Born and the neighbourhood Born could not be more evident.

Even the ground has another function today. There are games painted on the pavement, like hopscotch, and adults jump on it between spoonfuls. Children running, grandparents sitting on benches, young people arriving with friends, couples, families with children and people who have come alone and end up finding a place among others. All ages fit on the same promenade. "I've been coming to the Born for years and I've never seen it like this. Now it seems to belong to the people, to the Majorcans, not to the terraces. It's very pleasant to be able to sit here and watch the children play without having to consume anything. It's a public space reclaimed," explains Catalina Romaguera, 74, who has come with her daughters and grandchildren.

A little further on, Marga Ensenyat, 33 years old, has brought food from home and is serving it while her children play beside her. "This is what we should always be able to do. El Born is ours too. It can't be that to enjoy a public space you have to go into a restaurant and pay," she argues. This evening's protest, however, is not in the form of a large demonstration. It is much more everyday. It is simply about occupying the space and demonstrating that a public place should be for sitting, playing, dining, and talking without needing to consume at exorbitant prices.

A Born in Catalan

This is where one of the most symbolic elements of the night appears: language. For a few hours, the Born has changed its soundtrack. The promenade, accustomed to receiving a multitude of foreign visitors every day and hearing conversations in English, German, Italian, or French, tonight has sounded mainly in Catalan. It's not that tourists have disappeared from the City. It's that residents have occupied the center of the stage. Among the luxury shops, the displays of big brands, and the terraces dismantled to one side of the promenade, conversations in Catalan have once again been heard loudly. "It's amazing to see the Born like this. We don't want people from outside to stop coming, but those of us who live here also need to have spaces. Many times we are happy to find Catalan speakers, as if doing so were a rarity, and that's what we have to reverse, because it's sad. We need to reclaim spaces. A public Born cannot be a Born privatized by terraces and tourism," assures Carles Manzano, 23 years old.

The image is even more powerful after what happened this morning. The National Police had informed the restaurateurs that they had to remove the terraces for the celebration of Dimecres a la Llesca, a decision that the agents justified by the risk that the event could lead to acts of sabotage or confrontations with establishments. The measure has generated discontent among restaurateurs and has also been questioned by the organizers of the meeting. But the night offers a very different picture from what the police warnings predicted. "We are not delinquents. The Police have treated us as if we were going to cause incidents, and in the end, look what we are doing: eating, playing, and being together. It is very sad that for wanting to reclaim a public space they treat us as if we were a problem," laments Tonia Massana, 45 years old.

The National Police had linked fears of incidents with the Brunzit demonstration and, especially, with the events that occurred on July 26 after the demonstration against tourist overcrowding, which brought together 70,000 people. The Information Brigade had also considered the slogan "Liberation of public space" a risk factor, understanding that it could imply actions against terraces and other elements installed in the street. Brunzit, on the other hand, argues that Dimecres a la Llesca are citizen gatherings with no history of incidents and that the objective is to reclaim spaces in Palma for neighborhood use. And tonight, at the Born, the message has been expressed in a way as simple as it is difficult to misunderstand: by dining.

The bread with oil, the trempó, the omelettes and the carmanyoles have been occupying the spaces that a few hours before were reserved for the terraces. There were no menus, prices or reservations. Nor waiters. Only people who brought food from home and looked for a place to sit. For one night, El Born has stopped being just a commercial showcase or a place to pass through. It has been a place to meet. To bring the children. To meet friends. To have a chat. To have dinner.

And the contrast with the usual Born has been almost theatrical. On one side, the shop windows of luxury brands remained lit and the restaurants only served customers inside. On the other, a group of adults were playing hopscotch. A grandmother shared bread with oil with her grandchildren. A group of young people finished a plate of trempó. And, all around, the conversations of the residents filled the promenade.

El Dimecres a la Llesca thus arrives at the end of summer: with a protest made more of lunchboxes than banners, more of conversations than speeches, and more of neighborliness than confrontation. The organizers wanted to reclaim the Born as a space for citizen gathering. And tonight they have occupied it. Not to exclude anyone, but to remember that they are also here. That the Born is also theirs. And for a few hours, it has been.