The Fascio Operaio was a clandestine association of
free thinkers
Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an unorthodox attitude or belief.
A freethinker holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and should instead be reached by other meth ...
founded in the Tre Zucchette tavern of
Bologna
Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
on 27 November 1871 by a group of
Garibaldi
Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...
an veterans of the French campaign led by
Erminio Pescatori.
The purpose of the association was the emancipation of the people from ignorance and poverty. From the beginning,
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...
and a young Andrea Costa joined the Fascio Operaio. The Fascio was the first
Emilian section of the
Lega Internazionale dei Lavoratori.
Alceste Faggioli and the headquarters was located at 1137
Via Castiglione on the second floor of the
palazzo Pepoli. The association already collected more than 500 members at the end of the year, on 27 December it issued the first issue of the weekly Il Fascio operaio directed by Erminio Pescatori while the first regional congress took place in Bologna from 17 to 21 March 1872.
With these words Faggioli described his idea of the worker association:
We (Craft Worker) have formed sections of crafts, for example blacksmiths, masonry, chapels etc. All these sections having different interests come together separately to deal with their business. However, the individual sections are tightened by the economic constraint, so that if the chapels make a strike, the other sections help them with money; So the strikes are profitable and at the same time the masses are used to revolutions. We are waiting for that day that we do not want the proletariat to get stuck, but in the meantime, it has the greatest benefits that the strike and the association derive from.
[Treccani - Alceste Luigi Faggioli]
See also
*
Secret society
A secret society is an organization about which the activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence ag ...
References
* Maurizio Degl'Innocenti ''Geografia e istituzioni del socialismo italiano: 1892-1914'' Napoli, Guida, 1983
* Paolo Favilli ''Storia del marxismo italiano. Dalle origini alla grande guerra'' Milano, Angeli, 1996
Notes
*
Organizations established in 1871
1871 establishments in Italy
Secret societies in Italy
Socialism in Italy
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