The last farewell on Liberation Day. It was a secular funeral with which the family and friends said goodbye to Luigi Carollo, rights activist and great protagonist of the pride events in Palermo. He died at the age of 54 after emergency hospitalization at the Buccheri La Ferla hospital in Palermo. “It’s a huge loss – said Daniela Tomasino, national vice-president of Arcigay – It will be difficult to find people with his political vision, with his intelligence, with his understanding of the context. We will miss him forever.”
The last secular farewell was held in San Mattia ai Crociferi. Carollo, one of the fathers of Palermo Pride, was also its organizer since its birth in 2009. His sister Vera and the entire world of Pride were there to say goodbye to him, starting with one of the protagonists of the first “gay marriage” Massimo Milan.
Carollo leaves a great void, civil rights activists point out. In fact, we were already working on Pride 2024 scheduled for June 22nd
Social condolence
Many comments on social media. “Luigi was a committed person – says city councilor Mariangela Di Gangi – a sincere friend, a radiant man. His passing throws us into despair. A great Palermo man is leaving.” “This news is like a blow – says Tonino Cafeo – Our Luigi Carollo didn’t make it. We lose a companion and friend of immense value. A free and open mind like few others. The political community of the Italian Left and the LGBTQ+ community lose an indispensable point of reference in these very difficult times but above all a loved one.”
A life for rights
Everyone who has tried or is trying to describe Palermo knew Luigi. It was an indispensable crossroads. He knew perfectly well how difficult the road to rights was. But he wasn’t one of those who looked away or lowered his voice. He was just like that: tenacious and kind. Of that tenacity that does not deny human kindness, but which never gives up on itself. The posts that commemorate him tell, even today, the profound meaning of his figure. Lucia Lauro, a courageous person on the path of solidarity, writes: “He who lives life as a gift never dies. Thank you Luigi Carollo, this city is infinitely grateful to you for what you were, for how you taught all of us what freedom and struggle were.”
Messages to remember him
Pierpaolo Montalto writes, again on Facebook: “I don’t want to believe it, I don’t want to accept it, I don’t want to give myself peace. Another companion, another friend, another brother, another Sicilian hero leaves and leaves an immense void. In Palermo you were Pride, for all of us you were a cry of hope, a dream of freedom, a wonderful story of liberation that we could hold, embrace, imitate”. These are the last hugs. All the messages, all the phone calls converge towards the unanimity of a deep condolence, without an ounce of rhetoric. They are testimonies of successful human relationships, whether there was agreement or disagreement. Luigi Carollo was a standard-bearer of mutual listening. There was nothing that could not be said or heard, because there is nothing that cannot be communicated between people. This is also why he will be missed in Palermo who often closes their eyes, ears and lips.
“Palermo has lost a pillar of the fight for rights. I express closeness to the family and friends of Luigi Carollo, to the Palermo Pride community and to all those people to whom the meeting with Luigi contributed to restoring hope in the future and in change”, declares the senator of the 5 Star Movement, Dolores Bevilacqua, commenting on the disappearance of the activist Luigi Carollo. “My closeness to family and friends for the loss of the Palermo activist, Luigi Carollo. Sicily loses a brilliant, lucid person who spent his life defending human rights. Values that underlie a just and inclusive society. When respected, they help ensure dignity, equality and freedom for all, regardless of political opinions or circumstances.” These are the words of Forza Italia group leader in the city council Ottavio Zacco.
Orlando: “A great pain”
Even the former mayor of Palermo, Leoluca Orlando, expresses his closeness and embraces his family and those who knew and were close to Luigi Carollo with a touching embrace. Leoluca Orlando writes thus in a post on his X profile: “A great pain. Luigi Carollo is no longer with us. He lived and promoted, despite misunderstandings and obstacles, the constitutional rights of all mortified by uncivilized laws and behaviors. Pride will remain linked to his name and his love for our city.”
Zacco, “The city loses a brilliant and lucid person”
“My closeness to family and friends for the loss of the Palermo activist, Luigi Carollo. Sicily loses a brilliant, lucid person who spent his life defending human rights. Values that underlie a just and inclusive society. When they are respected, they contribute to guaranteeing dignity, equality and freedom for all, regardless of political opinions or circumstances” says Forza Italia group leader Ottavio Zacco to the city council.
