Italy

2022 - 9 - 23

Post cover
Image courtesy of "The Atlantic"

Is Fascism Returning to Italian Politics? (The Atlantic)

Next week, Italy will have a new prime minister—and the leading candidate, Giorgia Meloni, is an avowed fan of Mussolini.

But the Brothers of Italy’s advocacy of “presidentialism,” as the idea of a more robust head of state with a popular mandate is known in Italy, has naturally put the country’s center-left parties on edge. Women like Meloni “are protected by patriarchy,” she said, “because they are often the first to support the fundamental pillars of male power and privilege.” Meloni’s party slogan—“God, Fatherland, Family”—celebrates those very pillars of power. A scenario in which a Meloni-led government’s rollback of civil rights might put Italy on a path to conflict with the European Union is not far-fetched. In particular, the natalist obsession of Il Duce’s 20-year rule, with its “Battle for Births,” has survived in the Brothers of Italy’s present-day concern about boosting the birth rate, its proposal to link social-welfare assistance to mothers and those engaged in child care, and its attempts to [limit](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/22/abortion-rights-at-risk-in-region-led-by-party-of-italys-possible-next-pm) reproductive rights. [called](https://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/politica/2017/02/18/migranti-salvini-pulizia-di-massa_38d0c829-7431-4ddb-8b06-da1fb7f7ff62.html) for a “mass cleansing” of immigrants. Berlusconi’s short-lived center-right government of 1994 also included the Northern League (the original name of Salvini’s party) and brought the MSI’s neofascists into a governing coalition for the first time in Europe since 1945. [fascism is a](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/11/scepticism-over-giorgia-melonis-claims-fascism-is-history-in-italian-far-right)fascism is a [“LGBT lobbies”](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62659183) that are out to harm women and the family by destroying “gender identity”; George Soros, an [international speculator](https://twitter.com/broderly/status/1552247114507378690/photo/1),” she has said, who finances global [“mass immigration”](https://twitter.com/broderly/status/1552247082681081863/photo/1) that threatens a Great Replacement of white, native-born Italians. [genderwashing](https://muse.jhu.edu/article/852745/pdf?casa_token=QS6FmS0-i9cAAAAA:SSPLUTOXDR9oP0jyLQFdAyGNn7-wXc6qZtNwgDRxVNC8PboUWNMs2i6-4_BxAlf2wnJ4hjS8x_XO),” when female politicians adopt a nonthreatening image to blunt the force of their extremism. [“](https://twitter.com/broderly/status/1552247114507378690/photo/1)“ Now, just weeks before the 100th anniversary of the March on Rome—the October 1922 event that put Mussolini in power—Italy may have a former MSI activist for its prime minister and a government rooted in fascism. [said](https://jacobin.com/2022/09/hillary-clinton-women-far-right-italy-giorgia-meloni-feminism) to an Italian journalist at the Venice International Film Festival earlier this month.

Post cover
Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Italy v England: Nations League – live (The Guardian)

Minute-by-minute report: Gareth Southgate's side are hoping to avoid being relegated. Join Scott Murray.

[England](https://www.theguardian.com/football/england) back. [England](https://www.theguardian.com/football/england) out on the left touchline. [England](https://www.theguardian.com/football/england) immediately counter through Sterling, who dribbles down the inside-left channel and draws a cynical foul from Bonucci. [England](https://www.theguardian.com/football/england) travelling support at the end of the match. [England](https://www.theguardian.com/football/england) man falls on his back. 59 min: Bellingham romps down the middle and sprays a pass wide left for Foden, who tries to find Kane at the far stick. Sterling hopes to get on the end of it by the left-hand post, but Toloi flicks out for a corner, just in time. England claim a foul – it was right on the edge of the penalty box – but both referee and VAR rule it a 50-50 accident. As things stand, England will be relegated from the top tier. 83 min: Bellingham makes a bit of space down the inside-left channel, his twists and turns earning himself the right to shoot. The Italian takes up possession again and slips a pass down the left for Dimarco, who creams a shot across Pope and off the base of the right-hand post. 88 min: Di Lorenzo sashays in from the right and rolls across for Cristante, in acres on the edge of the D.

Post cover
Image courtesy of "Aljazeera.com"

Italy elections: Campaigning is over. Now what? (Aljazeera.com)

Italians will vote on Sunday to elect a new parliament with a right-wing coalition tipped to form a solid majority.

But as the prospect of becoming prime minister nears, at a time when Italy is receiving much-needed EU funds to shore up its underperforming economy, the 45-year-old has softened her tone. But the party has failed to strike any partnerships that would help it form a governing coalition, while Letta has been criticised for focusing more on attacking Meloni than promoting his party’s actual policies. Led by Enrico Letta, the centre-left party has sought to cast the vote as a stark choice between two opposite and irreconcilable visions. While the right-wing coalition has maintained a united front on certain flagship policies, including opposition towards “illegal immigrants” and gay-rights lobbies, cracks have appeared in the proposed handling of the energy crunch. Meloni has stuck to Draghi’s line: refusing to increase Italy’s record high debt while insisting on capping the price of gas and decoupling it from energy costs. One in every four Italians plans to vote for Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party, according to the last survey published before a pre-election ban on September 10.

Explore the last week