During the past Hajj season, Muslim internet users were charmed by the sight of a group of Spanish Muslims travelling on horseback from Spain to Makkah. Their journey, shared online, reawakened memories of the great riḥla and pilgrimage traditions of Muslims from Spain centuries ago.
But this nostalgic image has now met its bitter counterpoint. In the small south-eastern town of Jumilla, in Spain’s Murcia region, a group of far-right Christian politicians have pushed through a measure that recalls the darkest pages of Spanish history: the Inquisition against Muslims that began in the late 15th century.
The Ban
On Friday, Jumilla’s municipal council, in a town of just 27,000 people, approved a measure stating that “municipal sports facilities cannot be used for religious, cultural, or social activities alien to our identity unless organised by the local authority.” In effect, Muslim celebrations such as Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha are now banned from being held in municipal sports venues.
The motion originated with the far-right Vox party, which had initially called for a complete ban on Islamic events. The ruling conservative Popular Party softened the wording but still passed the measure, with opposition only from local left-wing parties. Vox members themselves voted absentee, as the amendments don’t reflect their harsher proposal. Meanwhile, their Murcia branch still celebrated on X:
“Thanks to Vox, the first decision in Spain to ban Islamic holidays in public spaces has been taken. Spain is the land of Christian people and will remain so forever.”
An Old Identity Crisis
There is little need to state that the move openly clashes with the Spanish constitution, which guarantees religious freedom and, since 1978, has abolished Catholicism as the official state religion. But beyond legality, the decision opens into a deeper historical wound, Spain’s unresolved struggle with its own identity.
Vox leader Santiago Abascal wrote the same day: “We must protect public spaces from practices foreign to our culture and our way of life…. Spain is not al-Andalus.”
In response to the whole hullabaloo, local politician Juana Guardiola asked a question that cut to the heart of the matter: “What do they mean by identity? And what about the centuries of Muslim legacy here?”
For starters, this is hardly an isolated incident that shows how Spain still struggles to navigate its hate history. A 2020 report by Asociación Musulmana por los Derechos Humanos (AMDEH) noted that anti-Muslim sentiment in Spain is deeply rooted in a historic “anti-Moorish” hatred perpetuated through the Reconquista narrative — even in school textbooks. In this view, all Muslims, whether Spaniards, Pakistanis, or North Africans, are reduced to a single category: “Moors.”
Was Spain Andalusia?
History tells a very different story from the one Vox tries to paint. Muslims ruled much of what is now Spain for almost eight centuries. Under this rule, Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived together, with the freedom to practice their faiths and access civil service. It was an age of scientific, cultural, and artistic flourishing.
From eyeglasses to advances in medicine and geography, from the translation movement that revived classical knowledge in Europe to architectural marvels like the Alhambra, this period left an indelible mark on Europe. The Spanish language itself still carries this legacy: around 8% of its dictionary, some 4,000 words, comes from Arabic.
But this era ended when the last Muslim kingdom fell to Catholic forces in 1492. By 1499, forced conversions, torture, and imprisonment were widespread. By 1501, officially, no Muslim remained there — at least publicly. Many continued to practice Islam in secret for a century, until the final expulsions of 1609–1614. The Spanish Inquisition itself lingered until it was abolished in 1834.
Reading the Past, Watching the Present
European history holds a grim record of enforced religious uniformity, not only against Muslims but even against Christians of differing doctrines. This obsession with a singular identity has cost countless lives.
Today, many young Europeans prefer to leave that history behind, embracing a more open and plural society. Yet political forces like Vox seem determined to revive the logic of the Inquisition — attacking what they see as “foreign” culture. Today, it is Eid celebrations in public spaces. Tomorrow, could it be names, languages, and eventually beliefs themselves?
*The views expressed in this content are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of İdrakpost.
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