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Thousands of black-clad fascist sympathizers chanted and sang Benito as they headed to the basement of the Italian dictator, 100 years after Mussolini entered Rome and completed the bloodless coup that led to 20 years of fascist rule Mussolini.
Crowds of about 2,000 to 4,000 marchers, many sporting fascist symbols and hymns from the Italian colonial era, were more than in the recent past as fascist nostalgists celebrated the centenary of the Roman procession.
On October 28, 1922, fascists in black shirts entered the Italian capital and launched a coup. Two days later, the Italian king authorized Mussolini to form a new government, which culminated in the coup.
The crowd in Predapio, the birthplace and final resting place of Mussolini in the northern region of Emilia-Romagna, was also apparently changed by the fact that a party with neo-fascist roots led the Italian government for the first time since World War II to be more daring.
Organisers warned participants from as far away as Rome, Belgium and the US not to salute the Roman salute used by fascists or risk prosecution.
Still, as the crowd stopped outside the cemetery where Mussolini was buried, some couldn’t resist, waiting for prayers and greetings from Mussolini’s great-granddaughter, Orsola.
“After 100 years, we are still here to pay tribute to the man this country wanted, and we will never cease to admire him,” Orsola Mussolini said to cheers.
She cited her great-grandfather’s achievements, citing an infrastructure boom that built schools, hospitals and public buildings, reclaiming malaria-riddled swamps for cities, and extending the pension system to non-government workers.
She was also joined by her sister Victoria, who led the crowd in prayer.
The crowd uttered a final “Duce, Duce, Duce,” Mussolini’s honorific title as Italian dictator.
Anti-fascist activists marched in Predapio on Friday to mark the anniversary of the town’s liberation and to prevent fascists from marching in Rome on the exact anniversary.
In the cemetery on Sunday, the Duke’s admirers lined up into the basement he hid in the back corner, one handful at a time.
Each was given a memory card signed by his great-granddaughter with a smiling photo of Mussolini, his leather-gloved hands raised in a Roman salute.
“History will prove me right,” the card read.
Italy’s failure to fully embrace its fascist past has never been more severe as Italy’s new prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, seeks to distance her far-right Brothers of Italy from its neo-fascist roots.
This week, she denounced the anti-democratic nature of fascism and called its racial laws that sent thousands of Italian Jews to Nazi death camps a “low point”.
Historians have also added Mussolini’s alliances with Nazi Germany and Japan in World War II and his disastrous colonial campaign in Africa to his devastating legacy.
Ms Meloni, now in power, is pursuing a moderate line for the new centre-right government, including Matteo Salvini’s coalition and Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia.
But her victory has given far-right activists a sense of vindication, even if they consider themselves to be more to the right.
“If Lucifer can beat the left, I will vote for him,” said organizer Mirko Santarelli, who heads the Ravenna chapter of Arditi, which started out as a first-world An organization for veterans of the Great War, which later grew to include caring for Mussolini’s memory.
“I’m happy to have a Meloni government because if nothing is worse than the Italian left.
“It’s not the government that reflects my thoughts, but it’s better than nothing.”
He said he would like to see the new government repeal laws prosecuting incitement to hatred and violence based on race, ethnicity, religion and nationality.
It includes the use of signs and symbols – many of which appeared in Sunday’s parade.
Mr Santarelli said the law punished “the crime of expressing an opinion”.
“It was used on the left as castor oil to keep us quiet. When I was asked what I thought of Mussolini, it was clear that I had a good opinion of him and I risked being condemned,” Santa Claus Mr Reilly said.
Francesco Munitillo, a far-right activist and lawyer representing the organizers, said Italy’s high court had determined that as long as it was monumental and “did not meet the criteria that could lead to the reorganization of a fascist party”, it could go ahead. Demonstration.
Still, magistrates have opened investigations into similar performances in Predappio and elsewhere in recent years to ensure they do not violate the law, he said.
One such case was closed without charges last week.
To avoid their information being distorted, Mr. Santarelli asked ordinary people present not to speak to reporters.
Rachele Massimi traveled four hours from Rome with a group for the event on Sunday, taking her 3-year-old from a stroller to watch the parade.
“It’s historic,” Ms. Massimi said.
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