The controversial censorship of the most voted poster
The Ripoll government team, led by Aliança Catalana, has generated controversy by censoring the most voted poster for the Festa Major de Ripoll during the 40 Hours Fair, an annual tradition in the town. The work chosen initially featured vibrant colors and a variety of people and characters. However, the presence of a girl with a veil at the bottom caused the disagreement of Sílvia Orriols, mayor of the city, who expressed her discontent on social networks.
The controversy of the decision
Given the author’s refusal to remove the image, the poster that was in second place in the voting was finally chosen. This action has been unanimously condemned by the opposition parties, who have criticized the measure as “censorship”, “nonsense” and “barbarism”.
The official justification
The mayor justified the disqualification of the poster by arguing the intention of not normalizing Islamic misogyny. This position was supported by Orriols on social networks, stating that it was the right decision. The organizing committee of the festival communicated the decision, claiming that it was a political determination beyond the control of the festival committee, which caused the winner to resign. As a consequence, the poster that occupied second place became the official one.
Reaction of political parties
Various parties, including JxCat, ERC, PSC and the CUP, rejected Orriols’ decision, calling it “shameful”, “imposition” and “denial of the popular will”, while demanding rectification and denouncing censorship. This position was supported by the opposition in general, who expressed their discontent with the actions of the mayor of Ripoll.
