This year marks the fortieth anniversary of the Bologna massacre which took place at the station on August 2, 1980. Bologna prepares to commemorate the most painful anniversary in its recent history. All ceremonies will be in compliance with the measures of anti contagion containment.
Bologna a massacre that we cannot forget
It was August 2, 1980. At 10.25 a explosion stops the life of the Bolognese and all of Italy. It is the most serious terrorist attack in the period of the years of Lead which is added, alas!, To the massacre of Piazza Fontana on December 12, 1969, to that of Piazza della Loggia in 1974. Principals and material executors were linked to the extreme right and the deviant secret services but, even today, after forty years, there are many obscure points. However, there remains the memory of a gesture linked to the strategy of tension, which was very common in the seventies.
In the blast at the station 85 people were killed, a dramatic toll to which over 200 wounded were added. For those who were there in those years, the images that were broadcast by the national news of the devastation remain indelible. The station clock stopped at the time of the explosion of the bomb is an icon, a reminder and a warning so that nothing like this happens again.
The massacre forty years later
The fortieth anniversary as the mayor points out "It is a particular year ... It is the year in which the trial on the principals will open ... the Municipality of Bologna will be a civil party ... we certainly have a duty to be alongside family members, to support them." An important year, therefore, in which it is hoped that we can shed light on an atrocious event such as the massacre of the station. There will be many evocative moments to remember the sad event. Unfortunately, the procession will not take place through the city streets.
But there will be a ceremony in Piazza Maggiore, with limited admissions, which will remember those dramatic moments. At 10.25 am we will listen "The whistle that in all these years has tore the air like the bomb tore lives and hopes" emphasizes the mayor. In a modest way but, we will not stop recalling the many Bolognese who crowded the square that day feeling like a community.
So many moments to not forget
To access the square and the scheduled events, it is necessary to book with the methods made available by the Municipality. It will be possible to book your seat on the Cineteca di Bologna website, on the Municipality website but also on the institutional pages Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and on the Telegram channel. For the 40th anniversary it was designed by Poste Italiane a philatelic cancellation dedicated.
The image was made by Gaia Merli, student of the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna, winner of the Poster for the City project by Professor Danilo Danisi. To ensure the participation of all Bolognese in the commemoration, the municipality has decided to create one live streaming on the YouTube channel of the Municipality of Bologna which can also be followed on Facebook. However, there are many appointments scheduled for the official ceremony which will begin in the previous days. Debates, meetings, concerts, art installations, the entire program can be consulted on the official channels of the municipality.
