Turin, Italy, April 4, 2025 – Thousands of women and activists flooded the streets of Turin on Friday afternoon, their voices rising in a powerful procession to protest the relentless wave of femicides plaguing Italy and the government’s perceived failure to address gender-based violence. Organized by feminist collectives like Non Una Di Meno, the march—stretching from Piazza Castello to Piazza San Carlo—saw demonstrators clad in purple, wielding signs and megaphones, and chanting a pointed rebuke at Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s administration: “Parlano di sicurezza invano” (“They speak of security in vain”). The demonstration, sparked by the recent killing of a 32-year-old woman in nearby Rivoli, underscored a national crisis that has left Italy reeling.
A Deadly Toll Fuels Fury
The Rivoli murder, reported Tuesday by La Stampa, marked Italy’s 23rd femicide of 2025—already outpacing last year’s grim tally at this point, per the Interior Ministry’s latest data. The victim, strangled by her ex-partner in their shared apartment, became a rallying cry for a crowd fed up with what they see as hollow government promises. “Another woman dead, another family broken, and still they do nothing,” a protester told RAI News, her voice cracking. Non Una Di Meno’s Turin chapter reported over 5,000 attendees, with banners reading “Basta Femminicidi” (“Enough Femicides”) and “Meloni, Where’s Your Security?” dotting the march.
Italy’s femicide rate—105 in 2024, per ISTAT—remains a stubborn stain on a nation that criminalized it as an aggravated offense in 2013, with 62% of cases involving partners or exes. Turin, a progressive industrial hub, has seen its share: three women killed locally in 2024 alone. Friday’s procession, held under gray skies, turned Piazza San Carlo into a sea of purple scarves and furious chants, with organizers projecting speeches onto municipal buildings—some defaced with red paint symbolizing blood.
“Security in Vain”
The slogan “They speak of security in vain” struck at Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia-led coalition, which swept into power in 2022 promising a hardline stance on crime. Meloni’s “security package,” rolled out in 2024, beefed up police funding and surveillance but has been slammed by feminists as a misfire on gender violence. “They give us cameras and cops, but not shelters or justice,” Marta, a 28-year-old marcher, told Corriere della Sera. Critics point to slashed budgets for women’s refuges—down 15% since 2023, per CGIL union stats—and a stalled 2025 bill to boost restraining order enforcement, still languishing in Parliament.
Protesters also lambasted Meloni’s focus on Trump-style tariffs and rearmament—54% duties on China hit Turin’s auto sector—over domestic priorities. “She’s busy with trade wars while we die,” a Non Una Di Meno flyer read, echoing posts on X: “Turin’s women say no to Meloni’s fake security—femicides aren’t a foreign threat.” The government’s response was tepid: Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi vowed “zero tolerance” in a Friday statement, but offered no new measures, fueling cries of empty rhetoric.
A City’s Breaking Point
Turin’s anger wasn’t just symbolic. Near Via Roma, a splinter group hurled eggs at a police cordon, prompting a brief scuffle—two arrests, no injuries, per La Repubblica. Elsewhere, activists staged a “die-in,” lying on the pavement to represent victims, while a sound system blared names of the 105 women killed last year. “We’re not numbers, we’re people,” organizer Giulia Rossi told ANSA, her voice hoarse from shouting. The procession paused at Palazzo Madama, where a minute’s silence honored the Rivoli victim, followed by a roar of defiance.
The march tapped a broader unrest. Turin University’s February #MeToo protests over faculty abuse, per ANSA, resurfaced in chants linking institutional neglect to street-level violence. “From classrooms to homes, it’s the same fight,” one banner read. With Trump’s tariffs roiling Italy’s economy—Fiat Chrysler shares down 7% Thursday—protesters tied economic insecurity to gendered vulnerability, arguing austerity leaves women trapped with abusers.
A National Echo
Friday’s outcry rippled beyond Turin. Rome’s feminist groups plan a solidarity rally Saturday, while Milan’s collectives eye a “purple strike” next week. The Interior Ministry reports 73 femicide investigations open nationwide in 2025, yet conviction rates hover at 40%, per EURES data—a gap activists say emboldens killers. As Meloni’s coalition—polling at 46% per Ipsos—faces pressure to act, Turin’s procession stands as a raw demand: less talk, more change. For now, the women of Piazza San Carlo march on, their anger a warning that “security in vain” won’t silence their fight.
