My grandfather had studied to become a music teacher and had founded the band of Vezzano. My grandmother was the daughter of the town-clerk of Vezzano. He was involved in the struggle for the unity of Italy, together with his brother, Baroni Radighieri. My grandmother used to read the newspaper everyday, although she was a woman. My father often reminded me about how important it was for women to have education. They got married when they were very young and since they weren't able to find employment, they got into farming.
The fascist regime didn’t spare us children. I was really very good in drawing. I had drawn some very nice fasces with a laurel wreath. It’s not easy to colour that with crayons if you’re not good at it. It turned out really nice. My drawing was chosen as the most beautiful one in the school. We were called at the Ausoni theatre for the award ceremony. The podestà was to hand out the prizes. The whole fascist hierarchy was attending, as always in case of ceremonies. I was the last one who would have been awarded. They finally called me. I went up the steps to the stand. Mr. Ganassi was there. Every evening I used to bring him some milk of a cow I had raised. Since he had a little child and he had been losing all his children when very young. Mr. Ganassi told me: “So you don’t belong to the Piccole Italiane?” I answered: “No, my father didn’t sign me up”. “So we can’t give you the award”, said Mr. Ganassi, and sent me back. How can a little girl who’s ten or eleven years old understand that having a membership card is worth more than her skills? I went home crying. My mother was feeding the pigs. I was telling her that it was her fault that I didn’t receive my prize. She slapped me and told me that at least I had something to cry about. She didn’t know how to explain me. Parents had to be really careful to talk with us kids. Children often repeat things they hear at home: If they said something bad about the fascists, parents could be punished. Even when they were talking in the cattle shed, they kept telling us not to talk about what we heard. So since we were kids we knew we had to keep quiet in order not to get ourselves and our family in trouble. Then our family moved to Reggio, because the kids were going to school. My brother had been going to high school at a boarding school in Parma. They bought a house in Dalmazia street. Life changed dramatically for me. We left farm life, based on conservatism, traditionalism, on having to be careful to what you say or do. Also, women would be considered being a nobody. I used to be told to shut up because I was a woman even at home. My mother thought this was right. In the city I started meeting women who went to work. The working class elite used to live in Dalmazia street. Reggiane factory technicians of the water and gas companies.
In the morning I was interrogated by the chief of OPI and by one of the commissioners, I think it was Dr. Cocconi.
Anita Malavasi (1921 - 2011)
alias name
Laila
Resistance
1943: Roncolo di Quattro Castella (Italija)
Armed Resistance, Unarmed Resistance, Partisan
resistance groups
144° Brigata Garibaldi »Antonio Gramsci«
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Original interview language (Italian)