Italian activists pour red paint on Spanish Steps to protest femicide

On Wednesday, 26 June, in Rome, an unusual protest occurred. Activists gathered in the Italian capital and smeared one of the monuments with red paint. They chose the famous Spanish Steps to express their opposition to the prevalence of women being murdered and their dissatisfaction with the government's inability to tackle the issue.

Violence against women remains a significant problem in many countries across Europe and around the world. We regularly receive information about rapes, beatings, and abuse of girls. They often become victims because they leave their partners or refuse to tolerate disrespect. In essence, the reasons why women lose their lives are usually trivial.

There is a plague of murders of women ongoing in Italy. Since December 2022, over 40 women in this country have lost their lives. That is why activists gathered at the Spanish Steps in Rome on Wednesday, 26 June, and poured red paint over the famous steps. They did this to draw attention to the problem that the Italian authorities could not handle. "Paint can be washed off, but lives cannot be restored," said the women's rights activists in Rome with such banners.

In November 2022, one of the largest demonstrations against violence towards women took place in Rome. The protest was related to the brutal death of Giulia Cecchettin, who her boyfriend murdered because he could not accept that she did not want to be with him. She was only 22 years old. Since then, over 40 women have lost their lives in Italy. Hence, activists decided once again to gather in Rome.

“This painting symbolises the blood of 40 women who have been killed since Giulia Cecchettin's murder, but there are many more people who suffer daily due to violence and are exploited because of their gender. This is their blood. The slaughter that society does not want to see, which remains consistently hidden and accepted as if being killed by a husband, partner, or child were something normal,” said one of the protest participants in an interview with "Corriere."

Another protest participant recalled the words of the sister of the 22-year-old Giulia, murdered in November. In November 2022, she appealed for people to change the law and to care more about women instead of merely observing a minute of silence to commemorate the victim's name. She urged that people believe women when they say they fear their partners and are worried that something might happen to them. She then, along with other activists, placed photos of the 40 murdered women on the painted steps.

“We are here for this reason. [...] We are here to scream our pain and make the problem visible. Our government does not respond to these tragedies. This paint will be washed off, but lives cannot be restored,” said a protest participant in an interview with the media.