Censorship goes back to school. It happens in Rome, where the Liceo Amaldi, in the Tor Bella Monaca area, on the eastern outskirts of the capital, bans the magazine «Scomodo». Reason? “The abortion inquiry is a divisive issue.” The students rebel «Stuff from Minculpop: and they protest in front of the Institute
Yet it happened. Just look at the magazine’s Instagram site to reconstruct all the stages of the magazine’s ban.
“The newspaper is discriminatory because it deals with topics such as the right to abortion, emphasizing the lack of financial assistance, but not the problems of large families who receive even less support”, reads the minutes of the School Council which banned the distribution of Scomodo . “In seven years of free distribution in schools, this is the first time that a school formally prohibits the distribution of our magazine,” reads the post of “Uncomfortable” on Instagram.
The gag was triggered by the investigation into the right to abortion which appeared in the 45th issue of the magazine: an in-depth study of the little visible obstacles that every woman must overcome to complete the voluntary termination of pregnancy.
“It is serious that a discussion of this kind can be carried on in an institutional forum such as an Institute Council,” says Edoardo Bucci, editorial director of the magazine. «The newspaper has reached more than 100 schools and even at the Amaldi High School it had arrived on the proposal of a school collective, as a need for the boys and girls of the institute – he continues – It can be legitimate and legitimate to ask for the newspaper, building a free comparison between the generation of teachers and that of the student body. But we were really amazed because we didn’t expect a trial against Scomodo’s editorial line».
The magazine was born in 2016
«Scomodo» is the most read independent monthly of current affairs and culture under 30 in Italy. Not just a magazine, but also a place to meet and debate which over the years has become a point of reference for the new generations. Born in 2016 in Rome by a group of high school girls and boys, the editorial project returns to newsstands this year with a new structure that does not concern, however, only the printed press, but also the construction of an increasingly large community that revolves around the newspaper and spaces: from September 2023 «Scomodo» plans to open an editorial office every 6 months, starting from Milan, to also reach other Italian cities over time. The goal is to create aggregation poles for the younger generations. Hence the choice of the slogan for the promotional campaign: «The pages to be written are still needed»: to underline how the history of the monthly is still to be built «The new Scomodo – explains Edoardo Bucci, co-founder and Editorial Manager of Scomodo – is even more in-depth, with investigative articles involving up to twenty young editors. As always, we will talk about issues related to the new generations, and then about social issues, fears, people. Phenomena that have always been part of our editorial line and that we are trying to develop more strongly».
The no of the Institute Council
After the launch number, which was circulated free of charge in the classroom, the teachers had asked to discuss the next ones with the school representatives. But the school board objected. “The newspaper is discriminatory because it deals with topics such as the right to abortion, emphasizing the lack of financial assistance, but not the problems of large families who receive even less support,” the report explains.
The component formed by the parents’ representatives would have been the first to propose the ban on distribution to which, during the discussion, part of the teaching staff would also have been added. Thus the Council rejected the proposal made by the collective of the high school. Furthermore, the manager would have added that “in the school there should be no space for divisive topics, capable of creating ideological opposition rather than a constructive confrontation”.
What happened, as Bucci points out, represents a serious fact: «The fact that a precedent of this type was born precisely in this geographical context amazed us. And the fact that it has arrived at this political moment leaves us with many questions».