The Right Way?
9 viewsThere have been several disturbing reports in the Italian press recently.
First, there was an incident down in Rome in which a gay radio DJ was attacked for, well, being gay. Then, there was the Indian shopkeeper who was threatened and then attacked by, even if reports in the press deny this, what could well have been a racially motivated incident which was inspired by extreme right wing politics.
Next, there was the recent fight at the University of Rome, which, news reports indicate, was provoked by the placement of posters promoting right wing politics.
The above incidents are not all. I keep hearing comments, mainly from those from the south of Italy, that Berlusconi’s cronies are likely to come down hard on those from the south, who are regarded by the likes of Northern League leader Umberto Bossi as being a lazy bunch of wasters.
Yes, there do appear to be those in Italy who are fearful that Italy’s fresh new right-wing government may be showing signs that it leans rather closer to the extreme right than is good for comfort. Those who believe this may well have reason for concern.
In addition to Bossi who has been labelled as being openly xenophobic, Fini, one of Berlusco’s allies, heads a party with fascist origins. Then we have personalities such as Alessandra Mussolini. No prizes for guessing what her political leanings are. I wrote about this lady in my Cashing in on a Brand Name? Not. post way back in March 2005.
The evidence would suggest that Italy’s strongest government in 60 years, may well be its most extreme too.
Italy, it has to be said, has had extreme right wingers in power before, and many times, but this government is different. It has the power to act, whereas similar governments in the past have simply collapsed before they could really become established, and display their true colours.
The thing is, I can understand why those with a potentially heavy hand have been voted into power. Italy and its population do need something of a shake-up, and aside from Berlusconi and co, there was nobody else who was up to the job, with the possible exception of Di Pietro, that is.
However, while the shake-up may well take place, it could well be rather more than many Italian’s bargained for. And certain elements of Italian society are probably justified in feeling rather disconcerted at the moment.
I’ll be keeping an eye on developments, and writing about them, as and when they occur, here. Personally, I hope I won’t have too much to write about….but I have my doubts.
By the way, in northern Italy, summer has yet to really arrive, whereas it has down south. How does the saying go: ‘The sun always shines on the righteous.’.
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Yesterday’s Repubblica carried the story, “CACCIA ALLE STREGHE CONTRO I DIVERSI, AMNESTY BOCCIA L’ITALIA” in which an alarm is loudly sounded warning of the present and growing racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia that is spreading throughout this country.
What do we do, how should we react when a father attacks his own son with a knife because the son is gay?… when the neonazis who attack lawfully demonstrating university students are slapped on the wrist with a few days of home arrest?… when a mob is allowed to sack, pillage and destroy the homes of a group of people, not because of what they’ve done but because of who they are?
I wish I had answers to these questions. The obvious responses are to speak up, to make it loudly known that it’s not ok to be racist or homophobic. Sadly, I find that most people don’t consider it polite to voice these sentiments. Could it be that by appearing to not want to offend the ‘phobes’ sensibilities, they really camouflage their own true feelings? I’d like to think not.
In any case, under the present circumstances, I really think the time has come to equate silence with complicity.
Martin Niemoller comes to mind, as does Charles Mingus. Neimoller had the intelligence and strength to examine his own misled beliefs and work to oppose hate and nourish human rights. The famous poem, “First They Came” is attributed to him:
“In Germany, they came first for the Communists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist;
And then they came for the trade unionists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist;
And then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew;
And then . . . they came for me . . . And by that time there was no one left to speak up.”
The legendary musician, Charles Mingus, added,
“Then one day they came and they took me.
And I could say nothing because I was guilty as they were for not speaking out and saying that all men have a right to freedom.
Hi Gege’,
Yes, as you point out, there do indeed appear to be quite a few signs, and they point towards the extreme right.
This is not good, but is I think, to be expected. Even many Italians are terrified of the resurgence of Mussolini style government. I used to think that this fear was unjustified, but now, I’m not so sure.
Those comments I’ve heard, like: ‘Now Berlusconi is in power it’s time for me to leave Italy.’ Were maybe not so ‘tongue-in-cheek’ after all.
Still. it’s early days so far - let’s just hope this is no more than a phase. But with the likes of Fini, Bossi and Berlusco holding the reins, many, bad, things are possible.
Having shone a beam of hope, I have to say that the outlook is not too good.
This government is far too strong for Italy’s good, methinks.
Best,
Alex
Hi Gege’,
You were too quick for me!
Martin Niemoller makes an excellent point - we all live together, so were are all responsible for both our own actions and those of others.
Silence is not the best policy. Italians do not like direct confrontation - Belusco is famous for avoiding head on collisions, BUT, Italians will confront others when really pushed, but only if they think they have the power to win. The current government feels this.
Used appropriately this authority can do great good, however if abused or, rather, applied to exercise dangerous believes, then the result can be disastrous.
It is easy to kick things under the carpet, to hide them from view, but these things do not go away. Alas, though, speaking up can be dangerous, and many people, not just Italians by any means, will not speak their minds, simply because they are afraid of the consequences.
Quite simply we are animals, like it or not. We act like animals, and we are not much better than animals.
Once we start to grow up, then the world will progress. As to when, or if, this will happen, well, I really don’t know. In the meantime we may well have destroyed ourselves.
Kind regards,
Alex
One final point Gege’ - have you noticed just how many transsexual prostitutes there are in Italy?
I have - I didn’t see any in the UK. Not that I am an expert!
Odd, is it not, that homophobia exists in a country in which there appears to be quite a demand for the sexual services of transsexuals.
Alex
Since we can’t hope that anyone will ever find the cojones to stand up to this coalition from hell (opposition? what opposition?!?), the best we can hope for is that the coalition, like all Italian coalitions, will eventually implode. Let’s not forget that down deep (and not that deep!), Silvio, Bossi and Fini hate each others’ guts.
“Quite simply we are animals, like it or not. We act like animals, and we are not much better than animals.” - honestly, I think animals are usually much better than us.
As for the viados - ya think?!?!? How bizarre is that! Straight Italian men would like to think that this is the land of machismo, but they get their geography wrong. This is not Spain. Here, the macho veneer is paper thin… and covered with guilt. Perhaps we have the church to thank for this phenomenon? After all, just take a glimpse at the pope and his entourage, then tell me that drag queens don’t rule!
For a short while we lived in Birmingham, right next to Balsall Heath, an area famed for it’s prostitues but I’ve never seen so many around as I have here in Milan. Nor did I ever see so many transexuals, I agree, Alex.
@Gege. I notice that it is diffult to tell the gay people from the straight people here. In the UK, most of them would be supposed gay! In my view this is much better than in the UK where the macho veneer must be retained at all costs leading the the well known opening to a conversation - ‘Wot yer looking at? Want a punch in the face, do yer?’. No, give me the Italian macho veneer, which so easily slips, every time.
To quote you Andy:
“I notice that it is difficult to tell the gay people from the straight people here. In the UK, most of them would be supposed gay!”
Ooh er! The stereotypical gay male, correct me if I am wrong here, dresses well in designer clothes, watches what he eats, does not drink too much, goes to the gym to keep slim, is sensitive, intelligent, and creative. And likes his house to be well decorated and tidy.
Does this description remind you of many of the male population of a country we know quite well?
Blue touch paper lit! Let’s wait for the sparks to fly. If this post disappears (or I do!) suddenly, it may be because I’ve received death threats from well dressed people!
Cheers,
Alex
Well, that really made my evening, Alex. It actually made me laugh out loud. Thanks.
Actually, it’s a little more than that. It’s the WAY that men look at you. At first it was quite off-putting but now I’m used to it.
Or, of course, all the men that look at me in that way really ARE gay???
Damn! If only I’d realised that sooner ……..
[...] in actual fact, they are terribly conservative. Forget about the discussion over on “Blog from Italy”. In almost everything they do, they are ‘held back’ by this need to conform. And, it seems, [...]
Hmmm lemme see… how do I shape up on this list?…
Stereotypical Male Checklist:
-> dresses well in designer clothes… NO
-> watches what he eats… NO
-> does not drink too much… NO!
-> goes to the gym to keep slim… NEVER!
-> is sensitive, intelligent, and creative… ask my other half
-> likes his house to be well decorated and tidy… WAY NOT!
Personally, I think the maintenance of this MachoMan veneer is not only a waste of time and energy, it’s highly overrated. Who cares, anyway? Another thing I don’t understand - what is it that so freaks out straight men if another man (gay or not) looks at them in what they interpret as a “certain way”? What’s the big deal? Gay men get looked at that way by straight women all the time and don’t get all wiggy. Gooo figure!
Anyway, I absolutely affirm the Italian Need to Conform theory. It is what the majority here lives by. Hard to understand, coming from a culture that invented the renaissance produced such astounding art and.
Perhaps ‘off-putting’ was the wrong word there. It’s just that the signals, used in gay bars and clubs in the UK are used by so many men here in everyday life.
@Gege, apart from one of the items on the list I answer the same way as you! But, then, one of my American friends here say I am the straightest gay man she has ever known. LOL. Obviously she doesn’t know you!
I agree. Strange that the culture that has so much, well, ‘culture’ should, in general, be so conformist.
Never having frequented many gay bars or clubs (my time for that was the 70’s when I still lived in New York - a legendary era in a legendary place, but a scene I just wasn’t into), I’m not really familiar with those signals. I am familiar, tho’, with the fact that european men, and mediterranean men in particular, are more comfortable than anglo-saxon men in their physical contact with each other. It would be unheard of in the U.S. for two men to walk arm-in-arm, much less kiss each other hello or goodbye.
Hey Andy, I know a lot of gay straight men - what a wonderful world, huh?
Anyway, back to the prostitues and viados… another thing I’ve always wondered about them: why is their activity a illegal? If it were legal, the only really criminal aspect of it (e.g. exploitation by pimps and organized crime) would be instantly resolved, leaving what boils down to a victimless crime, one based purely on misled morality.
On a stretch of road between Citta’ di Castello and Arezzo is an area that has been prostitutes’ “place of business” for as long as I can remember (at least 20 years). Obviously the local authorities know about it - they probably take a piece of the action. Nobody bothers them, they bother nobody. Some of them have been there as long as I can remember - regular landmarks! Everytime I pass them, I think how much better it would be if instead of making them stand by the side of the road in all kinds of weather, exposed to the elements, uncomfortable and at risk of being robbed or worse, they were allowed to operate like any other merchant. After all, why not? And besides, legal or not, it ain’t called the oldest profession for nothing.
I think the problem is that, whilst often prostitution is not illegal, pimping, etc. IS. And the reason for that is that some of the women (many?) are smuggled into the country and treated like slaves. They have no choice. I think, many of the prostitutes who have a choice tend to be the ‘high-class’ hookers.
I know that experiments were made in the UK, giving them a ’sheltered’ area and in other countries even licencing the brothels. It would be interesting to see how all of that worked out, I guess.
As Gege’ has noted, and he’s not the first, prostitution in Italy is extensive and open. And as Andy points out, many of the women, but not all, form part of sexual trafficking.
As in the UK, prostitution in itself is not technically illegal. Governments seem to baulk at making prostitution a crime (because many politicians are clients??!!). Instead, governments seem to produce a whole myriad of laws designed to discourage prostitution. Some, more open minded governments, in Holland for example, acknowledge that there is a kind of need, and produce the requisite regulations. This is possibly the best course of action IMHO. After all, sex is probably safer than drugs, as vices go.
As to whether prostitution is right or wrong, well, that is the subject of a whole discussion in itself, and it is a discussion that has been entered into more than a few times.
In the meantime, the oldest profession will remain so.
As to the viados, demand in Italy appears to be quite high, indicating, if nothing else, that there are plenty of Italian men who are, at the very least, bisexual. Although those concerned would probably never admit this.
I do wonder how an Italian wife would react if she found out that her hubby had been seeing a viados regularly…
Another thing about Italy is the level of affection Italian mothers display to their male offspring, and one wonders whether this, at times, may cause the objects of the affection to feel that female company is overly dominant and thus cause some men to look to alternative sources of affection.
I think if someone who was not Italian were to carry out a sexual psychoanalysis on Italian society, Italians may discover one or two things that would give them cause for thought…
All the best,
Alex
“Another thing about Italy is the level of affection Italian mothers display to their male offspring, and one wonders whether this, at times, may cause the objects of the affection to feel that female company is overly dominant and thus cause some men to look to alternative sources of affection.”
Welcome to the Land Of Nature-or-Nurture!
psssst — the correct answer is… nature.
@Gege.
Really!?!?!
YUP!