Friday 17 May in the Joyce Lussu Municipal Library of Rome, on the occasion of the International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia, Transphobia, an anniversary promoted and recognized by the European Union and the United Nations, the civil rights activist, Maria Laura Annibali will present his latest book “Women to browse”.
The subtitle says it all: “the singular lives of two Italian lesbian activists” or Edda Billi and Maria Laura Annibali. Written by Alessandra Bialetti and Lidia Borghi, with two notes by Danilo Gattai, through living testimonies, they tell the theme of the complex journey, which leads to awareness of the true self.
Maria Laura is a dear friend, together we have in common the ever-present cause of civil rights, not only of the community to which we proudly belong, the LGBTQI+ one, but also of people detained in prison, etc. She, for example, is a complete feminist, who has experienced the double effect of discrimination as a woman and a lesbian.
My last interview together dates back to 8 years ago, when on March 5, 2016, we asked through the demonstration “now straight to the destination” egalitarian marriage, later achieved in the approval of the Cirinnà law and therefore of civil unions. Maria Laura together with her partner Lidia was one of the first to have a civil union, becoming, in fact, the first couple of “differently young” women, both being over 70 years old.
Multifaceted activist, president of the Gay Project Association from 2014 to today, documentary maker and author of three docufilms, the first of which “The other half of the sky” which was the subject of a case study in the program of the Geography of gender, Theories, Practices, Representations held at the Department of Historical and Geographical Studies of the University of Florence, she held the role of Guarantor of the Women’s Council for Equal Opportunities of the Lazio Region for two mandates.
I ask her to tell me about the book “Women to browse” and how the idea was born: “This is a double biography, because I was pleased to talk about a woman who for me is a teacher, I believe she is a woman who all the women of Italy owe her something and I am convinced that she will go down in the history books. I’m talking about Edda Billi, one of the historic lesbian feminists of the sexual revolution and feminist revolution, who believes, in her own words, that after that of Christianity it was the greatest revolution in history.
So I liked this idea, also out of respect for the great esteem I have for her, which is what the journalist who collected our testimonies wanted to do. So our words that were received and then contextualized with historical comments for each of us. Then she wasn’t a veiled person like me, so she is someone who has fought for women’s rights since the early days. Edda Billi is currently 91 years old and has always lived in a town in Tuscany precisely 91 years ago. This is something that was right in my heart.”
The interview with Maria Laura is long, it lasts almost an hour, but time flies with her, retracing her late but emotional coming out. We talk about her love for her, love at first sight with Lidia, the civil union, her daily commitment and how it is never too late to be happy, even if she advises young people not to give up on being themselves as much as possible. as soon as possible. There are many awards she has received, many commitments that link her to the world of activism, which is why at the end of our chat, I invite anyone to know their story, because Maria Laura and Emma travel around Italy, bringing a message of hope and love.
Appointment therefore in the Joyce Lussu Municipal Library of Rome, on the occasion of the International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia, Transphobia, next May 17th, with the book “Women to browse” in which our Maria Laura Annibali will tell her story again . But before concluding this interview, I would like to recall the words of Edda Billi, currently Honorary President of the International Feminist Federative Association (AFFI) and founder of the “International Women’s House” in Rome: “I came out because I thought it was a beautiful thing and I didn’t understand why I had to keep it inside”.
Riccardo Cristiano
