A little while ago Kristin invited me along to take a tour with some women of one of the few remaining Civil War bomb shelters---most are parking lots now. This shelter is called Refugi 307 (refoojee---it's Catalan). It was really excellent. The guide was a part oral historian who told us a number stories of people who come to their shelter who used to use it during the war.... or of their kids who come. Bombing civilians from the air was not done in WWI ... and the sick art was tested out in the Spanish Civil War--only to be deployed heavily in WWII. Since it was new in the civil war, people didn't really believe it at first --- that it would be possible. So they didn't support the city building shelters. Later people formed neighborhood groups to build a very large number of shelters. The level of community organizing required was intense.... and also the rules. No discussion of religion or politics in the shelter. And you had to maintain a positive attitude. Those were the rules! Our friend Eileen Kershenbaum took this photo.
