Viterbo high school's façade inscription reignites debate over fascist legacy

In Viterbo, a letter to the editor by lawyer Giovanni Bartoletti warns that the fascist inscription on the façade of the Mariano Buratti Classical High School should be preserved as evidence of the regime’s defeat. He argues that erasing such symbols would remove a historical “trofeo” rather than confront the past.

The civic group “La Fortezza” responded, noting that the inscription was created during the building’s original 1937 construction for the Opera Nazionale Balilla, later the Gioventù Italiana del Littorio, which served to indoctrinate and militarise Italian youth. The group rejects accusations of “cancel culture,” emphasizing the building’s ninety‑six‑year history and the limited period it functioned as a fascist youth organization.

Both parties debate how to handle fascist-era symbols in public spaces, reflecting broader Italian tensions over historical memory and the preservation versus removal of contentious monuments.