25 April: the spirit of the Carnation Revolution lives on in Portugal
On 25 April 1974, the Carnation Revolution, led by the Armed Forces Movement (MFA), brought an end to Portugal’s Estado Novo, the longest-running dictatorship in Western Europe. In a non-violent uprising, the population took to the streets to support the military, placing red carnations in the barrels of their rifles. José Afonso’s song “Grândola, Vila Morena” was broadcast on the radio to serve as a signal to the groups that simultaneously seized the various seats of power, and it became … Read more