Juan Carlos Monedero is a cofounder of the Spanish radical left party Podemos and a professor of political science at Complutense University in Madrid.
This day in 2011, the Indignados protesters occupied Madrid’s Puerta del Sol to denounce Spain’s dominant parties and their austerity agenda. Ten years later, the Spanish left no longer has that insurgent dynamism — but it’s had an enduring success in breaking a previously monolithic neoliberal consensus.
Spain’s Socialist premier Pedro Sánchez has refused to grant top cabinet jobs to the radical left party Podemos. And as Spain faces another general election, Podemos faces a tough battle against division and marginalization.