The reason I wanted to consult Joël Delhom on the situation of the Peruvian libertarian movement is part of my reflections on the debate surrounding the so-called “Spanish exception”. This is the idea that the Spanish anarchist movement had a particularity that set it apart from movements in other countries. Some anarchists challenge this xceptionality by arguing that the Spanish CNT only organised half of the Spanish working class, with the other half being organised by the UGT. They add that other libertarian mass organisations in other countries organised a larger proportion of workers, citing “Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, France, Mexico, Peru, Portugal, and Uruguay, where a vast anarchist tradition dominated almost the entire labour movement.”

Peru being on the list is why I asked Joël Delhom, whose interesting article “The anarchist labour movement in Peru (1890-1930). An attempt at synthesis and historiographical analysis” I had read. Delhom does not dismiss the validity of the argument, but he points out that it would be necessary to “analyse the figures for each country mentioned.”