Italy

Death of Don Gallo: communist priest who fought for rights for all

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 23 2013 13:40

Yesterday, in his own city of Genoa, Father Andrea Gallo died at the age of 84. A “street priest”, as he liked to be called, he was much loved by the Catholic and non-religious left for his political and social commitment.

In his city, Don Gallo came to attention at the end of the 70s when he was removed from his parish for public speeches which were, according to the cardinal responsible for the removal, “not Christian but communist”.

Victory – albeit limited – at San Raffaele hospital

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 20 2013 09:16

After months of difficult struggle – in which workers blocked major roads, occupied rooftops and fought with police – an agreement has been reached at Milan’s San Raffaele hospital. The agreement was reached with unions early on the morning of Friday 10th May, after 16 hours of negotiation, and was finally accepted by workers on the 16th after a series of assemblies.

As with the previous agreement, which was rejected by workers earlier this year, all redundancies have been stopped in return for workers accepting a 9% cut in pay. The 66 workers who had already received redundancy notices will also be reinstated.

New Italians, Old Racists: the Current Italian Debate on Citizenship Laws

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 20 2013 09:01

A country at the crossroads

Berlusconi calls for supporters, attracts thousands of protesters instead

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 15 2013 15:17

Former Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi called for an unusual rally against the judiciary system on Saturday May 11. Thousands of left-wing activists and M5S supporters protested, while police protected Berlusconi's supporters.

Berlusconi has a love-hate relationship with the piazzas – or squares – of Italy. He hates them when they are full of his opponents, as happened in 2001 during the anti-G8 protests in Genoa, less than two months after the second Berlusconi cabinet had been sworn in on June 11 – and he calls for or implements repressive measures.

Pope embraces the No Choice March in Rome

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 13 2013 22:13

Pro-life supporters march in Rome on Mother's Day (March 12); meanwhile a hundred of left-wing activist also rallied to remember Giorgiana Masi, the 18-year old who was killed in 1977 during a rally celebrating the anniversary of the victory of the divorce referendum.

Straight into the arms of Francis I, the new Pope: the pro-life march held in Rome on May 12 (Mother’s Day) couldn’t have asked for a better ending.

Not Jolly: Genoa dock workers protest after the disaster

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 10 2013 16:20

Two workers are still missing and seven were found dead at the Port of Genoa, after the Jolly Nero, a cargo ship, hit the pilots’ control tower on the night of Tuesday May 7.

The city is in mourning. There was a 15 minutes stoppage during the morning of Wednesday, observed in schools, the university, shops, banks and industry. The Port workers were on strike until 1 pm.

Strikes and scuffles in Milan to defend public healthcare

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 9 2013 09:35

Health workers across the Lombardia region took part in a 24-hour strike on Wednesday 8th May, as part of the ongoing struggle against 244 redundancies at San Raffaele Hospital. Already, 66 workers have been served with redundancy letters, effective immediately.

However, while officially about the current struggle at San Raffaele, many health workers see this as part of a wider struggle to defend public healthcare, with workers displaying banners saying “Healthcare is a public good”. As one striking worker told Struggles in Italy, the attack on workers at San Raffaele is “part of a wider attempt to open up healthcare to the private sector”.

Cargo ship destroys building at the Port of Genoa: 7 dead

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 8 2013 18:20

Seven dock workers lost their lives on Tuesday May 7, when the cargo ship Jolly Nero hit a pilots' tower in the Port of Genoa. This incident draws attention on the shocking lack of safety of maritime workers in Italy, the country with the highest number of work-related deaths across the entire continent.

During the night of Tuesday May 7 the cargo ship Jolly Nero hit a pilots’ tower at the Port of Genoa. A 55 meter-high building collapsed, burying 14 workers: 7 have been found dead, 4 are injured and 3 are still missing.

Recchioni, Emidio (1864-1934) aka Nemo, Rastignac, Savarin

Submitted by Battlescarred on May 8 2013 14:52

A short biography of the Italian anarchist Emidio Recchioni, father of Vernon Richards

Emidio Recchioni was born in Russi, fourteen kilometres southwest of Ravenna in Italy on 4th October 1864. Starting work as a railway worker, his views changed from Republicanism to an outright anarchism under the influence of Cesare Agostinelli, the Ancona anarchist who was ten years his senior.

Neo-fascists and police attack students in Naples (video)

Submitted by StrugglesInItaly on May 8 2013 09:15

A rally of students was brutally charged by the police in Naples on Tuesday morning. The images of the attack went viral immediately, shared both on mainstream and independent media, from Repubblica to youreporter.it.

Surprisingly, almost all sources unanimously introduce the video with the same caption, reporting a police intervention in order to divide two clashing group of protesters and presenting the incident as a scuffle between students and workers. The video can be seen below: