Italian Politician Revives Stereotypes about Sicily
It is, in part, true that Sicilian men do not make chivalry their main trait while dealing with the opposite sex, but it is hard to digest that the Italian Interior Minister, Giuliano Amato, compared violence of some Muslim extremists to the violence that Sicilian men used against women until the ’70s, calling it a Sicilian-Pakistani tradition. The minister, of Sicilian origins himself, tried to clarify later, but his words opened a controversy and critics from both parties in Italy.
I personally think that violence is violence and violence against women is a man’s habit. It is not Sicilian either Pakistani. It might be called a “tradition”, the one of the strong submitting the weak, but it certainly cannot be defined within specific national or regional boundaries. It would make more sense to condemn violence without reviving old stereotypes.
I have always kept the minister in highly consideration and respect. However, this naive phrase reminds me that Italy has one of the oldest political class of Europe: they just think about the past. Therefore, the age of Giuliano Amato (69 years old) might explain his gaffe.
Technorati Tags [ sicilian-pakistani tradition | sicily | sicilian stereotypes | giuliano amato ]
