Around 100 students blocked Barcelona’s Avinguda Diagonal near Palau Reial on Tuesday 10th November in support of the following day’s general strike, according to news outlet Metrópoli. The protest interrupted traffic and tram services, while students also raised concerns about housing and their living conditions.

The blockade began at about 12 noon and the protest dispersed around 12.40pm. Drivers faced queues on a major route into the city, while tram passengers were temporarily unable to travel through the affected stretch.

Traffic and trams interrupted at Palau Reial

Students placed barriers across the avenue, initially stopping traffic and trams completely, Metrópoli reported. They also lit smoke flares and set off firecrackers.

Traffic on the side lanes and tram services resumed after about 15 minutes, although the protest continued until approximately 12.40pm. El Nacional reported that some vehicles, including articulated buses, turned around to avoid the queues.

The action was called by the Diagonal Campus Strike Committee at the Universitat de Barcelona, or University of Barcelona (UB). It was part of a day of student mobilisation before the general strike on Wednesday 11th November.

Students raise housing and education concerns

Earlier on Tuesday, students went through classrooms in several UB faculties in the Diagonal university area in a procession to explain their message. El Nacional reported that the students had left the physics and chemistry faculties at around 11am.

Rosa, a member of the campus strike committee, told reporters that the strike also concerned students, according to Europa Press. She said:

“We cannot continue to tolerate studying in a faculty with proper conditions being a privilege, or decent housing being something to speculate on rather than a guaranteed right.”

Banners called on the Diagonal campus to join the general strike and opposed rent-seeking and capital. Protesters also chanted in support of the working-class struggle and free, universal housing, Metrópoli reported.

The organisers included the Sindicat d’Estudiants dels Països Catalans, a student union; the Organització Juvenil Socialista, a socialist youth organisation; Lluita Internacionalista; and student assemblies from several faculties.

What it means for you

  • When: On Tuesday 10th November, from around 12:00 to 12:40.
  • Where: On Avinguda Diagonal near Palau Reial, Barcelona.

Sources: Metrópoli, catalunyapress.es, El Nacional, laciutat.cat.