The first edition of Disability & Bio-Diversity Pride Agrigento 2025 was
dedicated to supporting the Palestinian people on September 27th,
closing the 4th MED inclusion week-MEDiteranea and MEDica week for
inclusion-with traveling initiatives and guests from both Sicily and
abroad, from September 19th to 28th. An estimated 25,000 people with
disabilities live in the Gaza Strip alone. Weapons and wars are the
leading cause of disability in the world, and while the dead can "only"
be mourned, remembered, or avenged, we can and must do something for the
disabled survivors by lifting the siege and opening a humanitarian
corridor. Ableism reached its peak with an unspecified, but certainly
very high, number of disabled people physically eliminated by
Nazi-Fascist regimes, and today by Zionists, who bomb hospitals and deny
them essential healthcare.
The initiative is promoted by the national association Abbatti le
Barriere (ETS), the local Terebinto Bio&Diversità social bakery, and
with the support of disability associations such as the Unione Ciechi e
Ipovedenti (Union of the Blind and Visually Impaired) and Vitautismo
(Vitautism), AICS (Italian Confederation of the Blind and Visually
Impaired) and TTT (Tierra Techo Trabajo), civil society organizations
and the Agrigento Committee for Palestine, trade unions such as CGIL
(Italian General Confederation of Labour), and student organizations,
with whom we will monitor access and poor services in educational and
training facilities.
We began on September 19th in Agrigento with the EMMIT scientific
conference, during which a call for Mediterranean cooperation in the
health and social care sector was read, and with the online
participation of Dr. Asma Hasan Sbaih from Bethlehem, who was unable to
obtain a visa to attend the international afternoon session in person.
On the 20th, we set off with handbikes, bicycles, electric wheelchair
motors, and motorcycles from Sant'Angelo Muxaro (AG) to Siculiana Marina
for the "From the River to the Sea" relay race, with the Palestinian
flag raised. We stopped at the Pistachio Festival in Raffadali for the
second EMMIT day, on Nutrition and One-Health, with free visits and
screenings for prevention in collaboration with ASP Agrigento.
On the 21st, we will participate in the third edition of Disability
Pride Palermo, which we helped organize in recent years. On the 22nd, we
suspended our scheduled activities to participate in the General Strike
for the Palestine Solidarity Flotillas, with 20,000 people in Palermo!
On the 23rd, in Prizzi, we will visit the village with the Pro Loco, the
Sikanamente and Pyrizein associations, and the local Ombudsman for
Disabilities. This will be followed by a discussion on accessible,
fair-trade, and community-based rural tourism with the Myra Foundation
and guests of the Terra Terra "for all" hostel, run by the ODV
Solidarietà. On the 24th, we will compete in another Handbike Relay in
the Sicani Mountains, using wheeled vehicles and aids, from Filaga di
Prizzi (PA) to Santo Stefano Quisquina (AG), a town known for its water
sources and cheeses, and on to Bivona (AG), where we were welcomed by
the Primavera Onlus associations and ASD "R. Traina" of coach and former
Catania Calcio player Franco Colombo.
Inclusive Camping began on the beach in Siculiana on the 25th, with
adapted ramps and chairs, to reaffirm Free Access to Land and Sea,
themes that unite us with the anti-colonial resistance in Palestine and
the Flotillas sailing the Mediterranean Sea.
On the 26th, we took an urban tour of Rationalist Agrigento, exploring
the buildings from the twenty-year Fascist period, with Roberto
Bruccoleri, a cultural operator who last year led us through the
historic center and Pirandello's itineraries. During these initiatives,
we mapped the city's many barriers, which we will report on to the
Municipality of Agrigento, which sponsored the event but still has much
work to do to adapt the city. This work was begun by Gianni
Tuttolomondo, a disabled activist who served as councilor until his
untimely passing in 2023. This year's Pride Parade was dedicated to his
memory, with our commitment to continuing projects and initiatives to
make the city accessible and inclusive, a city that has already
squandered its opportunity as Capital of Culture 2025.
On the evening of the 26th, at the Scaro Café, we had the honor of
having Luigi Spera, a firefighter from Palermo, present, with the
permission of the judiciary. He is currently under house arrest and was
detained on terrorism charges, later dismissed, for a demonstration at
the headquarters of Leonardo Spa, a publicly held company implicated in
the Gaza genocide and in the sale of weapons to many of the world's
ongoing conflicts. During his time in high-security prison, he found a
way to escape by writing poems, later published by Red Star Press in a
collection titled "March 21, a Spring Closure," a reference to the date
of his arrest and the use of the Sicilian language in the book.
On the 27th, for the Agrigento Disability Pride march, we added
Bio-Diversity to extend the invitation to everyone, given that, unlike
San Giovanni Gemini and Cammarata (AG), which with Cori Project have
organized the Paesello Pride for the past two years in August, the city
of Agrigento had not yet held an LGBTQIA+ Pride parade. The route from
City Hall along Via Atenea marked with stickers the businesses that were
closed and the sidewalks were closed, concluding with a demonstration at
the Prefecture for Palestine, which has now become a regular event from
5 to 7 p.m. In the evening, after a Pro Palestine roundtable with
activists from Jordan and Armenia, a concert by Libero Reina and DJ Rey,
the Privilege Walk with activist Lou, and the Fakir Pawlowski circus
concluded with a celebration at the Scaro Café.
The initiatives continue throughout the month of October at Disability
Pride Puglia, with five dates: Taranto on the 4th, Brindisi on the 11th,
Lecce on the 12th, Foggia on the 19th, and Bari on the 26th. This
widespread pride event will be replicated in 2026, the year that will
mark 40 years since the PEBA (Architectural Barrier Elimination Plans)
law, which should have been drawn up by municipalities by 1987 and
subsequently implemented, under penalty of being placed under special
administration by the regions, a practice that almost never happened.
After decades, it's no longer time to politely demand inalienable rights
such as access to public and social life and the right to housing, for
which a nationwide campaign will soon be officially announced.
With Palestine in our hearts:
"Let's not give up, but let's tear down all barriers!"
For information and registration:
abbattilebarriere.it
ufurnu@autoproduzioni.net
Giacomo Sicurello - Terebinto Bio&Diversità ETS at 'U Furnu', Via Dante
13, Sant'Angelo Muxaro (AG)
https://www.sicilialibertaria.it/
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
dedicated to supporting the Palestinian people on September 27th,
closing the 4th MED inclusion week-MEDiteranea and MEDica week for
inclusion-with traveling initiatives and guests from both Sicily and
abroad, from September 19th to 28th. An estimated 25,000 people with
disabilities live in the Gaza Strip alone. Weapons and wars are the
leading cause of disability in the world, and while the dead can "only"
be mourned, remembered, or avenged, we can and must do something for the
disabled survivors by lifting the siege and opening a humanitarian
corridor. Ableism reached its peak with an unspecified, but certainly
very high, number of disabled people physically eliminated by
Nazi-Fascist regimes, and today by Zionists, who bomb hospitals and deny
them essential healthcare.
The initiative is promoted by the national association Abbatti le
Barriere (ETS), the local Terebinto Bio&Diversità social bakery, and
with the support of disability associations such as the Unione Ciechi e
Ipovedenti (Union of the Blind and Visually Impaired) and Vitautismo
(Vitautism), AICS (Italian Confederation of the Blind and Visually
Impaired) and TTT (Tierra Techo Trabajo), civil society organizations
and the Agrigento Committee for Palestine, trade unions such as CGIL
(Italian General Confederation of Labour), and student organizations,
with whom we will monitor access and poor services in educational and
training facilities.
We began on September 19th in Agrigento with the EMMIT scientific
conference, during which a call for Mediterranean cooperation in the
health and social care sector was read, and with the online
participation of Dr. Asma Hasan Sbaih from Bethlehem, who was unable to
obtain a visa to attend the international afternoon session in person.
On the 20th, we set off with handbikes, bicycles, electric wheelchair
motors, and motorcycles from Sant'Angelo Muxaro (AG) to Siculiana Marina
for the "From the River to the Sea" relay race, with the Palestinian
flag raised. We stopped at the Pistachio Festival in Raffadali for the
second EMMIT day, on Nutrition and One-Health, with free visits and
screenings for prevention in collaboration with ASP Agrigento.
On the 21st, we will participate in the third edition of Disability
Pride Palermo, which we helped organize in recent years. On the 22nd, we
suspended our scheduled activities to participate in the General Strike
for the Palestine Solidarity Flotillas, with 20,000 people in Palermo!
On the 23rd, in Prizzi, we will visit the village with the Pro Loco, the
Sikanamente and Pyrizein associations, and the local Ombudsman for
Disabilities. This will be followed by a discussion on accessible,
fair-trade, and community-based rural tourism with the Myra Foundation
and guests of the Terra Terra "for all" hostel, run by the ODV
Solidarietà. On the 24th, we will compete in another Handbike Relay in
the Sicani Mountains, using wheeled vehicles and aids, from Filaga di
Prizzi (PA) to Santo Stefano Quisquina (AG), a town known for its water
sources and cheeses, and on to Bivona (AG), where we were welcomed by
the Primavera Onlus associations and ASD "R. Traina" of coach and former
Catania Calcio player Franco Colombo.
Inclusive Camping began on the beach in Siculiana on the 25th, with
adapted ramps and chairs, to reaffirm Free Access to Land and Sea,
themes that unite us with the anti-colonial resistance in Palestine and
the Flotillas sailing the Mediterranean Sea.
On the 26th, we took an urban tour of Rationalist Agrigento, exploring
the buildings from the twenty-year Fascist period, with Roberto
Bruccoleri, a cultural operator who last year led us through the
historic center and Pirandello's itineraries. During these initiatives,
we mapped the city's many barriers, which we will report on to the
Municipality of Agrigento, which sponsored the event but still has much
work to do to adapt the city. This work was begun by Gianni
Tuttolomondo, a disabled activist who served as councilor until his
untimely passing in 2023. This year's Pride Parade was dedicated to his
memory, with our commitment to continuing projects and initiatives to
make the city accessible and inclusive, a city that has already
squandered its opportunity as Capital of Culture 2025.
On the evening of the 26th, at the Scaro Café, we had the honor of
having Luigi Spera, a firefighter from Palermo, present, with the
permission of the judiciary. He is currently under house arrest and was
detained on terrorism charges, later dismissed, for a demonstration at
the headquarters of Leonardo Spa, a publicly held company implicated in
the Gaza genocide and in the sale of weapons to many of the world's
ongoing conflicts. During his time in high-security prison, he found a
way to escape by writing poems, later published by Red Star Press in a
collection titled "March 21, a Spring Closure," a reference to the date
of his arrest and the use of the Sicilian language in the book.
On the 27th, for the Agrigento Disability Pride march, we added
Bio-Diversity to extend the invitation to everyone, given that, unlike
San Giovanni Gemini and Cammarata (AG), which with Cori Project have
organized the Paesello Pride for the past two years in August, the city
of Agrigento had not yet held an LGBTQIA+ Pride parade. The route from
City Hall along Via Atenea marked with stickers the businesses that were
closed and the sidewalks were closed, concluding with a demonstration at
the Prefecture for Palestine, which has now become a regular event from
5 to 7 p.m. In the evening, after a Pro Palestine roundtable with
activists from Jordan and Armenia, a concert by Libero Reina and DJ Rey,
the Privilege Walk with activist Lou, and the Fakir Pawlowski circus
concluded with a celebration at the Scaro Café.
The initiatives continue throughout the month of October at Disability
Pride Puglia, with five dates: Taranto on the 4th, Brindisi on the 11th,
Lecce on the 12th, Foggia on the 19th, and Bari on the 26th. This
widespread pride event will be replicated in 2026, the year that will
mark 40 years since the PEBA (Architectural Barrier Elimination Plans)
law, which should have been drawn up by municipalities by 1987 and
subsequently implemented, under penalty of being placed under special
administration by the regions, a practice that almost never happened.
After decades, it's no longer time to politely demand inalienable rights
such as access to public and social life and the right to housing, for
which a nationwide campaign will soon be officially announced.
With Palestine in our hearts:
"Let's not give up, but let's tear down all barriers!"
For information and registration:
abbattilebarriere.it
ufurnu@autoproduzioni.net
Giacomo Sicurello - Terebinto Bio&Diversità ETS at 'U Furnu', Via Dante
13, Sant'Angelo Muxaro (AG)
https://www.sicilialibertaria.it/
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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