Sassari, the Local Police in schools against gender violence with “Not even with a flower”

Thirteen secondary schools involved, over 1100 students interested and now a morning during which, together, we will attend a theatrical performance and then engage in a debate, to say with one voice "Stop gender violence". This is, in short, the program of the training campaign “Not even with a flower” of the Local Police of Sassari, dedicated to the prevention and fight against gender violence.

Last school year, highly qualified staff from the Via Carlo Felice Command, who are able to talk to the younger generations about specific issues of education on legality, dedicated themselves to spreading the topic of violence against women in 13 secondary schools, involving students who showed considerable interest and participation. According to Istat data, 88 percent of gender violence in Italy affects women – those who report it and those whose sad outcomes are known to the news – and 12 percent affects men. In 2024, in Italy, there were 90 femicides, in addition to the 117 victims of 2023. The data is constantly updated at each meeting, unfortunately it is always growing exponentially.

«Data and statistics in hand therefore make us speak of a social emergency but even more of collective responsibility.– they explain from the Command -. It is precisely on the theme of collective responsibility that, through training in legality, the local police try to provide young people with the tools to notice the warning signs of a relationship that is apparently idyllic at the beginning – too much so – until it reaches the succession of typical and cyclical actions as theorized and illustrated by psychologist Lenor Walker in the “cycle of violence”."".

Of considerable importance was also to illustrate to young people the ways of listening and understanding if they were to realize they were close to an abused woman, always supported by the police and the staff of the anti-violence centers from whom they could ask for support and help in managing the problem, as, indeed, a collective responsibility.

«It is impressive how after the meetings the young people have recognized some alarm bells in their own relationships or in those of people close to them, behaviors that before they considered normal or in any case of little relevance. We have also provided useful advice and procedures to those who instead realize they are friends and acquaintances of an abusive man or boy, who puts into practice attitudes attributable to both physical and psychological violence, increasingly widespread as well as difficult to recognize, all in the respect and protection of the victim» comments the commander of the local police Gianni Serra.

The next appointment will be Tuesday 19 November at 9 am at the Verdi theatre, during which the local police will present the show: “I labirinti del male”. The didactic-theatrical work, against gender violence, is part of the program of education to legality "Neanche con un fiore". Starting from the analysis of reality, Luciano Garofano (former General of the RIS) will talk about stalking, family dynamics, social networks, revealing hidden and often underestimated aspects of the problem of violence, but also of the hopes emerging from the new law on femicide.

With him, on stage the actress Giorgia Ferrero, who plays a dual role, to tell a story of conflict between reason and passion, on the border between public and private, legal or illegal, evil and normality.