The World Association of Ugly People (in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Club dei Brutti) is an organization dedicated to fighting for the recognition of ugly people, in a society that places a high value on physical beauty. The group's motto is "A person is what he is and not what he looks like".

History

The club claims to have a history in

Piobbico Piobbico (Romagnol dialect, Romagnol: ''Piòbich'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italy, Italian region Marche, located about west of Ancona and about southwest of Pesaro. Monte Nerone and the location ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, from 1879. It was launched again in 1963 as a marriage agency for the town's single women. The World Association of Ugly People club campaigns against

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

in the workplace based on looks. It attempts to make society more aware of ugly people's problems. It also helps people overcome their phobias and, in some cases, to find partners. In 2007, the group unveiled a monument dedicated to ugly people in Piobbico's town square. The monument depicts an unknown person looking at his reflection in a mirror.

Traditions

The club's emblem is the head of a wild boar. The club's crest features a reclining man smoking a pipe with the slogan: "Ugliness is a virtue, beauty is slavery". The club's patron is

Vulcan Vulcan may refer to: Mythology * Vulcan (mythology), the god of fire, volcanoes, metalworking, and the forge in Roman mythology Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * Vulcan (''Star Trek''), name of a fictional race and their home p ...

from

Roman mythology Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans. One of a wide variety of genres of Roman folklore, ''Roman mythology'' may also refer to the modern study of these representat ...

. At birth Vulcan was so ugly that his mother threw him over a cliff. He survived and became a skilled blacksmith. For providing

Achilles In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's ''Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Peleus, k ...

with superior weapons, he was admitted to

Mount Olympus Mount Olympus (; el, Όλυμπος, Ólympos, also , ) is the highest mountain in Greece. It is part of the Olympus massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located in the Olympus Range on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, be ...

where he married the beautiful

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...

, goddess of love.

President

The members of the World Association of Ugly People elect their president annually during the ''Festival of the Ugly''. This event is hosted by the small town of Piobbico in the

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

region of Italy every year on the first Sunday of September. Every year until 2007, Telesforo Iacobelli won the top prize and was president of the club, owing to his dedication to the organization. Also, he has a small nose in a culture where large noses are considered beautiful. On August 21, 2006, Iacobelli died.

Members

The following people have been members of the association.Club dei Brutti- About Us
on Internet Archive * Hausi Ionut Ioan *

Mike Bongiorno Michael Nicholas Salvatore Bongiorno (; May 26, 1924 – September 8, 2009) was an Italian-American television host. After a few experiences in the US, he started working on RAI in the 1950s and was considered to be the most popular host in Italy ...

Paolo Bonolis Paolo Bonolis (; born 14 June 1961) is an Italian television host. He made his debut in 1981 on ''Tre, due, uno, contatto...'', a program for children that aired on Italian national broadcaster Rai. Biography In 1982, he moved to Italia 1 where ...

Pippo Franco Pippo Franco (pseudonym of Franco Pippo) was born 2 September 1940 and is an Italian actor, comedian, television presenter, and singer. He made his name first as a musician in the early 1960s, and in the late 1960s began a career in film, starrin ...

* Piero Badaloni *

Alessandro Cecchi Paone Alessandro Cecchi Paone (born 16 September 1961) is an Italian television presenter, journalist, radio and television writer, and politician. Life and career Born in Rome, Cecchi Paone started his television career while still a teenager, hos ...

Gerry Scotti Gerry Scotti (born Virginio Scotti on 7 August 1956) is an Italian television presenter, actor and former member of the Italian Parliament. Early years Scotti was born Virginio Scotti on 7 August 1956 in Miradolo Terme, Pavia. After giving ...

Maria Amelia Monti Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

Robert Alai Robert Alai, HSC is a Kenyan blogger and cyber-activist. Alai, who used to run the now defunct information technology weblog at Techmtaa.com has earned notoriety for his stream of social rants. He has been sued and briefly incarcerated for his ...

In popular culture

In 2010, the Association provided inspiration for the song "Club Dei Brutti" by the English band Idiot Savant.Idiot Savant - Club Dei Brutti
Club Dei Brutti by Idiot Savant

References

{{reflist

External links

Picture of the door to the Club dei Brutti
Disability organisations based in Italy Prejudices Organizations established in 1963 1963 establishments in Italy Ugliness