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tbc
To be honest, I doubt the students scrawling Catalunya Lliure on toilet doors at the Universitat de Barcelona when I was there 17 years ago much cared about the history of the Cathars. Being a regional separatist/nationalist has long been a part of Spain's counter-culture, initially as a reaction to the Franquismo but it has stuck around after that ended. I don't mean to denigrate the identity by saying so, but the 'ancient hatreds' trope is as inaccurate as the idea that this isn't a real, felt identity. Past history is mobilised as a narrative to reinforce current feelings of community, even if elements of that history are contested.