Showdown in SPAIN.

• Author: Zissou, Rebecca
• Position: INTERNATIONAL

The Spanish region of Catalonia recently voted to become an independent nation. What might that mean for the rest of Europe--and for the United States?

Is Spain headed for a nasty breakup? Last month, people in the Spanish region of Catalonia voted to secede from Spain and form an independent nation.

The vote, which the Spanish government has declared illegal and unconstitutional, set off weeks of chaos and confusion. On the day of the referendum, nearly 900 people were injured when police officers attacked peaceful protesters and those attempting to cast ballots. In some places, police confiscated ballot boxes. Photos of the police dragging people out of polling stations by their hair, throwing others to the ground, and firing rubber bullets into crowds were broadcast around the world, prompting widespread outrage.

"Today the Spanish state wrote another shameful page in its history with Catalonia," said Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia's leader.

According to Catalan officials, 90 percent of voters backed independence. But turnout was relatively low: Just 43 percent of eligible voters--about 2.3 million people--cast ballots. Experts say many Catalans who oppose independence likely boycotted the referendum, not voting at all, while others may have stayed home because of the violence.

Since the vote, hundreds of thousands of people across Spain have taken to the streets in massive demonstrations both for and against Catalan independence. Those who favor secession say Catalonia, a wealthy region in northeast Spain (see map), would be better off on its own and that the Spanish government has too much control over their affairs. But other Catalans and Spain's leaders worry that the region--and the country as a whole--would suffer economically if Catalonia were to become independent.

Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has described the current crisis as "one of the worst moments in the recent history of democracy."

The stakes are incredibly high. Catalonia is a key industrial center that accounts for one-fifth of the Spanish economy. Its regional capital, Barcelona, is a major tourist destination that attracts 32 million visitors a year, bringing in billions of dollars annually. Catalonia's withdrawal from Spain would have huge implications for the country as well as the rest of Europe--and even the United States, experts say.

"Europe is the United States' most important ally," says Federiga Bindi, an expert in international relations at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. "Together, they have worked to ensure peace and democracy. If Europe starts to implode, even here at home, we will be less safe."

While it's unclear what will happen next, tensions have undoubtedly reached a boiling point, says Spain's Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria: "Never have Catalonia and Spain endured a fracture like [this]."

Centuries at Odds

Catalonia is one of Spain's 17 autonomous regions and home to 7.5 million people--about 16 percent of the country's total population. The region has its own language (Catalan), culture, and history dating back more than 1,000 years (see "Catalonia vs. Spain," below). Many Catalans have long considered their region to be separate from Spain.

The modern fight for Catalan independence began to gain strength after the 1975 death of Spain's longtime dictator, Francisco Franco. During his nearly 40-year reign, Franco took away much of Catalonia's autonomy and suppressed the region's culture. He outlawed the Catalan language, forced parents to choose Spanish names for their children, and executed or imprisoned thousands of people in an attempt to clamp down on opponents.

Over time, the oppression led to a renewed sense of Catalan nationalism and intensified Catalans' desire for independence.

In 1978, the Spanish government responded by granting the region limited self-governing powers. For example, Catalonia...