The first issue of Seara Nova magazine was published on 15 October 1921, during a period of turmoil marked by great social inequalities, significant economic slowdown, cronyism and plutocratic oligar- chies, low levels of culture among the population, a lack of values and ethical concerns in dominant spheres, a political regime of lies and incompetence, spreading corruption among those in power and the scandalous privileges they enjoyed.
The founders of Seara Nova – Aquilino Ribeiro, Augusto Casimiro, Azeredo Perdigão, Câmara Reys, Faria de Vasconcelos, Ferreira de Macedo, Francisco António Correia, Jaime Cortesão, Raul Brandão and Raul Proença – were opposed to what they called the “collective disaster” and stood for the values of intelligence, culture, ethics, jus- tice, and progress.
Over the course of these 100 years, the pages of Seara Nova have seen many frequent contributors, creators of high-quality con- tent, including Adolfo Casais Monteiro, Agostinho da Silva, Alberto Vilaça, Alexandre Cabral, Alves Redol, Armando Castro, Augusto Abelaira, Bento de Jesus Caraça, Blasco Hugo Fernandes, Fernando Lopes-Graça, Fernando Namora, Francine Benoît, Francisco Pereira de Moura, Gago Coutinho, Gilberto Lindim Ramos, Hernâni Cidade, Irene Lisboa, Rodrigues Miguéis, José Saramago, José Gomes Fer- reira, Magalhães Godinho, Magalhães-Vilhena, Manuel Mendes, Ma- nuel Machado da Luz, Mário de Azevedo Gomes, Mário Sacramento, Mário Sottomayor Cardia, Mário Ventura, Jorge Peixinho, Jorge de Sena, Rogério Fernandes, Rui Grácio, Sarmento de Beires, or Vitorino Nemésio – intellectuals of great merit and character, whose mor- als are mirrored in this phrase from the editorial of the first issue: “In democracy, he who lies to the people is defendant of high treason”. That same editorial ended with the aspiration to which Seara Nova still adheres: “May people of good intentions, of all nations, one day build, over a world still struggling with wretched nationalist disputes, the rainbow of a fair and free humankind, achieving in victorious peace the conquests of intelligence and disinterested purpose!”.
Seara Nova was always a space of dialogue, of openness to the ideas of progress, ethical rigour, research, and cultural dissemination, creating this unparalleled phenomenon that came to be known as “Searan spirit”.
In the resistance against fascism, the magazine, even when seriously obstructed by censorship, was a beacon of democracy and a space for elevated controversies and valuable contributions from all progres- sive intellectuals. From the 1960s, it achieved the status of major magazine of the anti-fascist resistance, always maintaining its strong cultural disposition. It, therefore, played a direct and important role in key moments of the democratic fight and resistance to fascism, such as the election of Humberto Delgado, the Democratic Opposition Congresses in Aveiro, or the electoral campaign of the Democratic Electoral Commission (CDE).
During the 1980s, in the light of the country’s recent experiences, Seara Nova revived itself as a cultural and democratic magazine, committed to the values of democracy, progress, social justice, soli- darity, and peace, based on the Searan spirit, principles that it contin- ues to follow and which make Seara Nova a field for the deepening of democratic and cultural values, and designing ideas for the future.
Editorial Board of Seara Nova magazine
