On 29 May 1921 in the district of Passogatta, on the outskirts of Modica Alta, a massacre took place in which nine workers lost their lives. 103 years later, on the same day and in the same places, the historian Giovanni Criscione will reconstruct the facts, the antecedents and causes of the massacre, the procedural history, the biographical profiles of the victims and executioners, on the basis of his book ” The Modica massacre” (Sicily point L editions). The book, which has been distributed for a few weeks, has already attracted the interest of the public and critics, having been chosen among the six finalists of the “Michele Selvaggio” prize of the Sannio Telesino Historical Institute.
The event, scheduled for Wednesday 29 May starting at 6.15 pm, will take place in the Passogatta car park (in front of the Farmacia del Mulino), which will be used as an open-air theater for the occasion. The scholar’s speech will be preceded by greetings from the mayor Maria Monisteri and the provincial secretaries Peppe Scifo (CGIL), Pippo Gurrieri (CUB) and Giovanni D’Avola (UIL); interspersed with the reading of passages from the book, by the actor and poet Francesco Basile, and the performance of struggle and protest songs from the 1920s by the singer Fiammetta Poidomani, voice and guitar.
“The Modica massacre” is an investigative book on a dark episode in Italian history: a demonstration organized by the Socialist Party which ended in tragedy, during a clash with the police and some fascists. Obscure not only because the dynamics, the instigators and the material executors have remained in the shadows, but also because it is unknown to almost all Italian historians. The authorities and the public force were no strangers to the massacre, covering up those responsible and steering the trial in the Court of Assizes in Syracuse towards an acquittal outcome.
The re-enactment of the Modica massacre, as well as a tribute to the victims, is also intended to be a moment of reflection and commitment not to forget. At a time when social justice and human rights are being tested (deaths at work, violent repression of dissent, increasing economic and social disparities, etc.), it is essential to look at the past and draw lessons for the future.
