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Today in Labor History January 10, 1859: Anarchist educator Francisco Ferrer was born. Ferrer started the first Modern Schools in Spain and inspired hundreds more to be created throughout the world. He opposed the Church’s monopoly over education and created Spain’s first secular, co-educational schools. In 1909, a kangaroo court convicted him of fomenting an insurrection. They executed him by firing squad on October 13, 1909. His execution caused worldwide condemnation and protests. George Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, as well as anarchists and radicals like Peter Kropotkin and Emma Goldman protested the execution. You can read my article on the U.S. Modern School movement here: The Modern School Movement (Fifth Estate, #411, Spring, 2022). https://www.fifthestate.org/archive/411-spring-2022/the-modern-school-movement/

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