Arezzo, 27 June 2024 – “Without memory there is no future”. On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Nazi-fascist massacre of Civitella, Cornia and San Pancrazio on 29 June 1944, the Municipality of Civitella in Val di Chiana in collaboration with the “Civitella Remember” association, the Pro Loco of Civitella and the twinned Municipality from Kämpfelbach, organizes a series of initiatives in which all citizens are invited to participate. The German Ambassador to Italy Hans-Dieter Lucas will also be present at the celebration.
“The massacre of Civitella, Cornia and San Pancrazio constitutes one of the most painful pages in our history – explains Mayor Andrea Tavarnesi – and its memory must continue to be honoured, because only by learning from the mistakes and horrors of the past will we be able to ensure a future of peace and justice. It is necessary to remember, today more than ever, the words pronounced by the Head of State Sergio Mattarella who said ‘without memory there is no future’, so as to contribute to nourishing a conscious and responsible memory, which strengthens in each of us the values and the indispensable principles of peace, solidarity, dialogue and cooperation between men and peoples”.
The celebrations began on 25 April with the official visit to Civitella of the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella, on the occasion of Liberation Day. They continued in May with the annual Peace March from San Pancrazio to Civitella, with the involvement of over 200 students from the “Martiri di Civitella” and Bucine comprehensive schools. This year, to celebrate this important anniversary, an International Symposium of Monumental Sculpture was also held until 15 June, with the participation of 10 world-famous international artists who created as many sculptures located in the hamlets of the area.
The June program will open on Friday 28th, at 9.15pm, with the Concert for the memory of “MAM Music, Art and Memory between Italy, Germany and Finland”, in Piazza Don Alcide Lazzeri in Civitella. On Saturday 29 June, at 8.30, the deposition of laurel wreaths is scheduled at the monuments to the Martyrs of Civitella in the places of the massacres in the municipal area, continuing, at 10, in Piazza Don Alcide Lazzeri, with the deposition of the laurel wreath at the Monument to the Martyrs of Civitella, followed, at 10.15, by the greeting of the Mayor Andrea Tavarnesi and the Authorities present. At 11.30, the Bishop of the Diocese of Arezzo-Cortona-Sansepolcro, Monsignor Andrea Migliavacca, will preside over the celebration of the religious rite at the Church of Santa Maria Assunta in Civitella. At 9.30 pm theatrical performance “Voci della memoria” by the Civitella Theater Group.
Of note, on 29 June, at 10.15am, the inauguration of the international photographic exhibition entitled “Against oblivion” curated by Luigi Toscano, UNESCO Artist for Peace 2021; an exhibition that can be visited until 21 July 2024 which is part of a project organized in collaboration with the twinned municipality of Kämpfelbach – with the contribution of the Federal Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany through the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Rome – which will be exhibited in Italy for the first time.
To conclude, the Conference The “Forgotten” Massacres, a debate on the difficulties of memory, will be held on Saturday 6 July at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chamber of Civitella. Speakers will include: historian Carlo Gentile, tenured researcher and associate professor at the University of Cologne and technical expert in the main trials of Nazi-Fascist massacres in Italy, journalist Udo Gümpel, writer Christiane Kohl, journalist and author Laura Ewert.
Luigi Toscano was the first photographer ever to be named “Artist for Peace” by UNESCO in 2021. He has already been to Paris and New York with his exhibitions, as well as to numerous schools. He was also awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 2021.
