VIDEO | Antonello Venditti against truncheons: “The police accompany freedom, not oppose it”

The singer defends a "free school" at Mic, where he presents the "Night before exams" tour

ROME – “School must be free. If there is a sacred place dedicated to freedom of expression it is school” and “the police should accompany democracy, not oppose“. With these words, Antonello Venditti openly sides with the young university students who have been protesting in favor of Palestine in recent weeks in the main Italian universities, and beyond. But above all, the Roman singer “puts the stakes” on the role of the police forces presiding over the ongoing demonstrations, in which there was also no shortage of repressive interventions with the use of force and truncheons, such as in Pisa, Florence, Naples.
“School must be free. If there is a sacred place dedicated to freedom of expression it is school”, he says this morning at the headquarters of the Ministry of Culture in Rome, where he presents “Notte prima degli exami”, tour-event celebrating the 40th anniversary of the album “Cuore”. The one, so to speak, of “We would like a friend”, “Piero and Cinzia” and, obviously “Night before the exams”.
“If someone asks me something about the police, the police should accompany democracy– continues the Roman singer- If I hold a demonstration, why the police, instead of accompanying my demonstration and defending democracy of the thing, should I be opposed? Why? And again: “We must accompany ourselves, instead of opposing ourselves – he continues –In a democratic country the police are there to establish public order and not public disorder. They must accompany freedom, if the demonstration is authorized , you have to accompany her and defend her. That’s all.” And he concludes with a bitter observation: “It doesn’t take long to understand it, but then it takes a long time to apply these little rules.”