CThe days are during the year, which is precisely impossible to define only as simple dates on the calendar. Among these is certainly the June 2nd: on this day of 1946, millions of Italians and Italianswho were difficult to go out of the Second World War and the fascist twenty years, were called to choose the desired form of state between monarchy and republic. And they chose the second. That was the first real collective leap that made Italy enter the modern era.
On June 2, 1946 women vote for the first time
The referendum, however, It was also the first opportunity in which Italian women could vote nationally. And other than abstention: they participated en masse. Moreover, it was not just a matter of choosing a form of state, but of deciding who you wanted to be as people. There were 12 million women who went to the polls: a figure that marked the story. The turnout was very high and, in the end, The Republic prevailed with about 2 million waste votes. King Umberto II abandoned Italy, and the monarchical chapter ended definitively with him.
A silent revolution
That vote for women represented a historical turning point, because they did not limit themselves to going to the polls, but they applied as representatives and, twenty -one of them, they entered the constituent assembly. Among these, Nilde Iotti, Teresa Noce And Lina Merlincentral figures in the definition of civil and social rights in the new republican Italy. After decades of political exclusion and after a world conflict, the female vote he became A powerful gesture of self -determinationthe beginning of a path, still in place, towards full gender equality.
The celebrations of June 2 are not only an institutional party, but an opportunity to reflect on the values of freedom, participation and unity that animate the country (Getty Images)
Symbols, values and living memory
Today, the Republic Day is celebrated with parades, speeches and solemn moments, especially in Rome, with the traditional passage of the Frecce Tricolori. However, beyond institutional ceremonies, on June 2 it should be celebrated, above all, because it reminds everyone of the responsibility of citizenshipthe strength of collective choices, The value of democratic participation.
Celebrations throughout Italy
The main events take place in the capitalbut not less throughout the country. Let’s see someone:
- the Roman day He begins with the flag -raising and the deposition of a laurel wreath to the soldier unknown to the altar of the homeland by the President of the Republic. Following The military parade along via dei Fori Imperiali. Therefore the performance of the Frecce tricolori.
- In Piazza Castello in Turinthe official ceremony is held with the flag -raising at 10 am, followed by the reading of the message of the President of the Republic and by a concert of the music band
- in Milanmusical performances will be held at Palazzo Marino. The concerts will open with the national anthem and propose a repertoire of gears and songs of the Italian tradition
- in Florence The traditional historical procession of the Florentine Republic will parade through the streets of the center, composed of figures in Renaissance clothes
- Furthermore, Many cities will offer free admission to museums And state archaeological sitesallowing citizens to rediscover national cultural heritage.
June 2, a legacy that still speaks to us?
Almost eighty years since that time, in times of global challenges and political disillusionment, a question is more than lawful asking it: how much of that legacy is still alive and present in the civil conscience of the country. In the face of the democratic participation, in the confidence in the institutions that shake it and a historical memory that risks being reduced to a formal anniversary rather than an exercise of awareness, celebrating on June 2 becomes much more than a celebratory act. Becomes an opportunity to reflect on how much, Today, we are able to defend that choice of freedom and participationindispensable for our democracy.
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