In 2018, 80 years after the enactment of the racial laws—and racist ones, as you rightly pointed out—you were appointed Senator for life. What emotions and motivations accompany your parliamentary activity?
At the time of my appointment, the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, also asked me a similar question. I replied that after the initial shock of the completely unexpected appointment, my thoughts immediately turned to the little girl who, in 1938, had heard on the radio the promulgation of the fascist government's racist laws. From that day on, I had been expelled from school and, essentially, from civil life. What happened next was the consequence of that initial trauma. This sense of memory and history has always accompanied my life, and certainly also my work as Senator for Life.
You presented a motion to establish a special commission on racism and the spread of hate speech. What are the expected results? Did you expect some political forces to abstain?
The Commission's proposal was born to combat phenomena of intolerance, racism, and anti-Semitism, and to understand and explore the issue of "hate speech." Not to prosecute anyone, but to address a problem that today, with social media, takes on immense proportions and concerns common sense: the spread of certain ideas, behaviors, and words—now called "fake news"—which in the past have provided a breeding ground for discriminatory, racist, and even murderous behavior. There were no votes against, only abstentions. Naturally, I expect the involvement and active cooperation of all parties during the Commission's work.
In his first speech to the Senate, he expressed his desire to "in some way give a voice" to those who suffered racial persecution, "that persecution that paved the way for the Italian Shoah of 1943-1945, which unfortunately was also an Italian crime, a crime committed by Italian fascism." Do you believe that Italians today are fully aware of the responsibilities they bore to fascism, or does the myth of "Italians as good people" persist?
Minimizing or even self-absolving attitudes must always be resisted. It is important that at all levels—schools, universities, the political world, and the media—an effort be made to instead spread memory, knowledge, a sense of responsibility, and a critical and self-critical spirit. Only in this way will we develop better citizens and a better quality of our civil and political lives.
"History is a common good. Its knowledge is a principle of democracy and equality among citizens." Thus begins the Appeal with which you, Professor Andrea Giardina, and the writer Andrea Camilleri invited young people and adults to defend historical research. Why do you consider the study of history so important?
It's essential that knowledge of history be deepened, up to the contemporary age, especially starting in school. We made that appeal when it seemed the history essay would disappear from the final exam. It seemed to us to be the wrong signal. The argument that the essay was being abolished because few students chose it in the exam was frankly weak. If anything, that fact should have encouraged us to do more to increase the "passion" for history among boys and girls. But it seems to me that the thrust of our appeal was well received by the public and the Ministry.
To keep alive the memory of what happened during the Holocaust, some significant testimonies written by those who lived through those tragic years have been published. To what extent can individual memories help us understand history?
Firsthand accounts are essential. Indeed, in any aspect of contemporary history, but particularly in the Holocaust, because what happened there was so incredible and shocking that future generations will need firsthand, detailed accounts, authentic words and images, to believe what otherwise seems illogical.
A "gender history" is also developing in Italy, focusing on reconstructing the role of women in different contexts of society. How does it manage, and how has it managed, to reconcile family life, professional life, and civic engagement?
The female perspective is essential for a more complete and complex vision of our lives and our history. Particularly in historiography, it's important to reread events and figures with different eyes and from fresh and original perspectives. For decades, I was unable to make my speech "public." Only with the birth of my first grandchild did something click; I felt it was my duty to begin personally engaging in bearing witness, remembering, and spreading knowledge and awareness.
What advice do you have for 20-year-old girls? And what can unite us women?
To be free, independent, to think for themselves. Women are very strong. I would say that the very story of us Holocaust survivors is proof of this. We have truly admirable examples of women who have managed to rebuild their family, professional, and cultural lives, bearing the weight of their experience, but supported by a particularly acute awareness and moral strength.
He often warned of the dangers of indifference and wanted this word to be the focus of attention for those who enter the Shoah Memorial in Milan. Why?
Because indifference was precisely the widespread attitude that caused us the most suffering at the time. No one helped an eight-year-old girl who had been incredibly expelled from school. No one greeted you anymore, no one invited you to parties anymore. No one heeded the cries of pain of the Jews who were being robbed of everything: their jobs, their lives, their belongings, above all their dignity. No one stood in the middle of the street to block the trucks carrying thousands of Jews to platform 21 of Milan's train station. And just think that even afterward, after 1945, the indifference and ignorance, the turning a blind eye, continued in many cases. The challenge against these phenomena, against these attitudes, is never won once and for all.
You have repeatedly emphasized that remembrance is a duty, and with your support for the Day of the Righteous, you demonstrate how fundamental it is to remember good. However, some fear that remembering good might distract attention from the necessary study of the crimes committed. Do you think this is a real risk?
Denouncing evil doesn't exclude celebrating good, and I see no contradiction in proposing the two together. Indeed, if anything, the very example of those who acted with humanity and courage inspires hope and commitment against evil, because something better is always possible, as well as necessary.
Love and friendship. How much do they mean and matter in your life?
Very much so. My love for my husband has been a special thing in my life. It developed in Pesaro after returning from Auschwitz, and truly marked a return to life, a rebirth. It was perfected by my love for my children and grandchildren. Friendship is also important. For those who have experienced "absolute evil," discovering positive, lasting, and gratuitous relationships has a truly special value.
The Republic of San Marino is just a few dozen kilometers from Pesaro, a city you love. Do you have any particular memories of San Marino?
The proximity to Pesaro, where I lived and still do for long periods, has indeed favored excursions to San Marino. We also had friends in the republic, and the opportunities to visit and stay were frequent and always very pleasant and interesting. But I must say that this question allows me to think back to my father, who died in Auschwitz; he was a great stamp collector, and I remember having some San Marino stamp sets that were particularly dear to him.
"The strength of life is extraordinary, and this is what we must convey to today's youth." These words, spoken on January 29, 2020, at the European Parliament, indicate a goal and a task for all of us adults: what can we and what must we do?
Ultimately, it's simple: to be civilized people. People who don't turn a blind eye, who don't turn a blind eye, who don't pursue only their own interests, but strive to "follow virtue and knowledge."
