2017 Catalan general strike

Catalan separatists held a general strike on 3 October 2017 following Catalonia's referendum on independence two days earlier. The referendum, which was held in defiance of Spanish national court orders, resulted in over 900 people injured as the national police attempted to prevent Catalans from voting. The violence galvanized separatist support for the strike, whose planning predated the crackdown, and led to endorsements from the Catalan government, the Catalan branches of the country's two largest labor unions, and pro-independence cultural groups.

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators, including 700,000 in Barcelona, participated in the strike. Despite high tensions, protests were civil, festive, and without incident, similar to prior pro-independence rallies. While protesters targeted Spanish police and national government sites, other effects included suspended public transportation and port activities, canceled university classes, and closed businesses small and large. Immediate effects of the strike included an emergency meeting called by the Spanish Ministry of the Interior and a rare televised address by Spanish King Felipe VI that condemned Catalan disloyalty and notably did not mention police violence during the referendum. Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont announced that the regional government would declare unilateral independence, which it did later that month.

Background

Catalonia held a contentious referendum on its independence from Spain on Sunday, 1 October 2017, against orders from the Spanish central government. The national police enforcement attempted to prevent Catalans from voting in some locations with violent crackdowns that resulted in about 900 people injured and separatist calls for a general strike.