Sabadell’s municipal government has demanded the withdrawal of the poster for the 2026 Barraques events during the city’s Festa Major, or main annual festival, after judging that it incites hatred and violence.

For festival-goers, the immediate consequence is that the poster will not be displayed on any municipal space, material or platform connected with the Festa Major while the dispute continues. The government has also asked for the name of the Ajuntament de Sabadell, the city council, to be removed from every version of the artwork.

The government led by mayor Marta Farrés made its position public on 23 July. It said it could refer the matter to Sabadell’s Comissió de Convivència, a body responsible for preventing violence, if the poster is not removed.

“We condemn it and call for its withdrawal because it incites hatred and violence. We believe that the values that should guide a Festa Major are coexistence and respect and that, in no circumstances, can images such as these, which incite violence and target particular groups or people, be tolerated or normalised.”Eloi Cortés, municipal government spokesperson

Images and slogan criticised by the government

According to the municipal government, the illustration includes a police car, the city hall and a church in flames, a depiction of El Llaminer hanging, and calls to abolish Sabadell’s civic conduct ordinance.

The government said those elements were incompatible with the values of coexistence and respect that it considers should accompany the Festa Major.

Organisers say the poster challenges the civic ordinance

The Comissió de Festes Populars de Sabadell (CFPS), a group which says it brings together more than 20 city organisations, presented the 2026 poster on 16 July. It was created by Sabadell illustrator Laia Dalmases.

The CFPS said the work centres on the slogan “Let us end the civic conduct ordinance” and is intended as criticism of the city model promoted by the Socialist Party of Catalonia (PSC) administration under Farrés.

The organisers also linked the poster to their objections to the civic conduct ordinance approved in 2024, which they say has made it harder for associations to organise activities in public spaces through delayed permits, last-minute changes to locations and times, and new administrative requirements.

Reported by Source Text Link, radiosabadell.fm, diaridesabadell.com, Redacció, Jordi Muñoz, El Periódico, Diari Catalunya.