Fascism may be long dead in Italy, but its ideology and symbols were never fully vanquished.
FILE - In this Sept. 8, 2017 file photo, demonstrators from Far-Right groups, Forza Nuova and Roma ai Romani confront with Italian Policemen in riot gears near a migrants and refugees shelter during a protest against their presence in Rome.
The leader of the right-wing party leading in the Italian polls, Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, has faced criticism for perceived complacency toward neo-fascist extremists in his bid to see his once regionally based League party finish No. 1 in Italy, and perhaps Europe, when Italians vote Sunday.
But his words belie the resurgence of neo-fascist groups emboldened on the sidelines of a European election campaign that is shaping up into a contest between Europe’s traditional political powerhouses and euroskeptic right-wing populists campaigning to restore control over a range of issues to the EU’s 28 member states. And many are putting at least part of the blame on Salvini for underplaying or even appearing to encourage Italy’s fringe extremist parties and their antics.
And at protests last month, far-right activists were emboldened to shout fascist slogans and raise one-armed salutes over the placement of Roma families — a minority persecuted during World War II — in public housing in the Italian capital. Critics noted the extremists had received a permit from law enforcement, which falls under the direction of Salvini. Salvini himself has tweeted photographs of Roma dwellings being torn down.
But Calderon said “another part of the population is attracted” to fascism. And that, he said, is because Italians have never fully dealt with their fascist past. Salvini, recognizing the power of Mussolini’s image, recently addressed a European election rally in the northern city of Forli from a balcony once used by the fascist dictator.
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