Due punti e accapo

ON THE OCCASION OF MARCH 8, THE UNA NESSUNA CENTOMILA FOUNDATION LAUNCHES A NEW SOCIAL CAMPAIGN: “MARCH 8: DUE PUNTI E ACCAPO” — A FULL STOP, OR RATHER TWO, ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS IN OUR COUNTRY.

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, the Una Nessuna Centomila Foundation launches the campaign “March 8: Due punti e accapo” on giant screens in the main squares of Rome and Milan and across social media. A full stop — or rather two — to open a dialogue, create space for change, and spark collective action and reflection starting from the current state of women’s rights in Italy.

At the heart of the campaign, in collaboration with Urban Vision and Hobo Studio, who conceived and produced it, is the desire to take stock of the female condition starting with the concept of time, through two approaches: one dialogic and the other historical.

In the first, young and very young women describe the conditions in which they live, work, and move, touching on themes like the gender pay gap (women still earn 15% less than men), the value of consent, the right to freedom, and the importance of gender-specific medicine to adequately recognize and treat symptoms specific to the female body.

Then comes a more historical perspective, showcasing laws that changed the course of women’s history. A deserved tribute to past achievements, with a clear eye on the present, a reminder that such victories must never be taken for granted or assumed to be fully realized. Thanks to images provided by the UDI (Union of Italian Women) photographic archive and Archivia, the campaign contrasts key historical moments — such as the approval of the abortion law (1978), the first time women voted in national elections (1946), and the law establishing equal rights between spouses (1976) — with the reality of 2024, which still shows, for example, that 7 out of 10 gynecologists refuse to perform abortions, or that only 52.6% of women are employed.

The campaign also includes a still from the film “There’s Still Tomorrow” (“C’è ancora domani”) by Paola Cortellesi, a powerful film that tells many aspects of women’s lives and strength. The image of Delia (Paola Cortellesi) and Ivano (Valerio Mastandrea) facing each other is paired with the 1975 law that defines equal rights for spouses, a crucial law that still hasn’t been fully realized. Cortellesi’s portrayal of the historical absence of such rights highlights this issue. This segment, for which we thank the director who is part of the artistic lab of the Una Nessuna Centomila Foundation, represents an example of how art can support organizations like the Foundation in driving change.

The spirit of the campaign and of this important day is summed up by Giulia Minoli, President of Una Nessuna Centomila: “For the Una Nessuna Centomila Foundation, March 8 is an occasion to remember past victories and celebrate the women who achieved them for all of us. We cannot help but think of Marisa Rodano, who passed away last December. She was the last living parliamentarian from Italy’s First Legislature, a partisan and activist to whom we owe the choice of the mimosa as the symbol of Women’s Day. But this is also a day for taking stock, to assess how much of that legacy has truly been secured, and how much further we still need to go on the path toward women’s emancipation.
We are part of an intersectional feminism that speaks to all women, not just Italian women.
On International Women’s Day, some countries — like France — celebrate the constitutional protection of abortion rights, while others still deny that right. There are women who bear the greatest cost of war, injustice, and horror, and it is to all of them that this day must speak.”