A demo that took place yesterday in Rome against the extension of the Green Pass, the health certificate that proves you've tested negative to Covid or you have received one or two doses of vaccine, turned into a violent riot led by neofascist groups.
A mob stormed the HQ of the Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL), Italy's oldest trade union, and occupied an A&E department, blocking off the red zone area, reserved to patients who arrive at the hospital in critical conditions. Members of the far-right Forza Nuova party were arrested after the demo.
The Green Pass was first introduced in Italy in August to enter places such as bars and restaurants, museums, theatres and cinemas; extended to means of transport in September, it will be compulsory by Friday this week to have it for workers before entering their workplaces. Workers who fail to present a valid health certificate will be suspended without pay.
According to the media, demonstrators were planning to storm also into the Chigi palace, the official residence of the Italian prime minister Mario Draghi. The scenes filmed at the CGIL called to mind the siege on Capitol Hill in January this year, but to the minds of many Italians they were reminiscent of Mussolini's armed squads violently devastating clubs, workers' leagues and trade union offices in the '20s. The riots were condemned by many politicians and the centre-left Democratic party called for Forza Nuova and other neofascist movements to be dissolved.
Can fashion help fighting against the return of fascism? Well, fashion can be used in a political way, as seen in previous posts and in the history of fashion there have been cases in which specific garments were used in symbolical ways to support a cause.
When in 1936 the Civil War broke out in Spain, designers responded with creations inspired by Spanish dress. Ballet costume designer Karinska and anti-fascist fashion designer Schiaparelli showed their support to the left-wing cause by creating dinner suits influenced by the attire of bullfighters (Schiaparelli also owned jackets by Spanish Sastreria Cornejo that were auctioned 8 years ago at Christie's).
Schiaparelli's Haute Couture A/W 2021 collection is actually entitled "Matador Couture" and features some references to bullfighter jackets among its elaborately embroidered designs, but the new creations are just a way to display the finesse of haute couture artisans and the original political reasons of Schiap's bolero jackets from the late '30s - early '40s has obviously been lost in our days.
Are you a fashion designer? Can you think about a way to support a social and political cause through a garment rather than a slogan T-shirt?
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