Tina Anselmi: History of a political passion
On the day that Italy celebrates the anniversary of liberation I want to talk about Tina Anselmi: She was seventeen when, in 1944, she attends the hanging of a group of young partisans in Bassano del Grappa, and that is when this young student He enters the fight armed with the resistance and becomes a relay of the partisans with the name of Gabriella.
I was always fascinated by the figure of Tina Anselmi. Born in Castelfranco Veneto in 1927, it aroused in me feelings of tenderness and affection, while its political and civil commitment, started with the resistance and continued in the Union and in the Christian Democracy, was for me a source of inspiration and admiration.
Tina Anselmi was the first woman Minister of the history of the Italian Republic, and in this capacity I knew her will and her tenacity.
I was working, then, in the Rome branch of Siemens, a multinational company of the metalworking sector, and I followed the trade union negotiations to cope with a company crisis that threatened heavily the employment levels in Italy. The dispute had reached a dead end and the parties asked for the mediation of the Ministry of Labour. I was part of the union delegation that day and night, without interruption, met with the undersecretary in charge, and in the end, thanks to the ministerial intervention, the dispute was closed with occupational guarantees for the benefit of the workers Expelled from the restructuring of the current production processes.
"I knew the reality of which, as a minister, I had to occupy myself and, very importantly, I was familiar with the culture, the psychology, the way of thinking of the trade unionists and the workers that they represented" will say thirty years later in the book interview Curated by Anna Vinci, where one speaks, among other things, of passion, of the spirit of service and of ideality that have given a profound meaning to its commitment. I have been a direct witness of this commitment, and the passing of time has not scratched my feelings towards this woman.
"As far as I am concerned – says Tina Anselmi – After many years, I can say that the most beautiful memories are closely linked to the solution of the problems, to the answers that my collaborators and I have been able to give to the needs of the people". And this is the shared joy of commitment-as the book's subtitle reads-; Here is the story of the political passion of a woman who, once appointed Minister of Labor and then health, continues to live in a room for rent at the home of two young ladies of Catholic Action, and there remains until the end of his last Legislature, in 1992.
A rare example in the Italian political panorama; An example to keep in mind because they are the characters like Tina Anselmi who first fought for freedom in Italy and then spent their lives for the reconstruction of the country, after the horrors and tragedies of the Second World War.
