Femicides in Italy, a disturbing trend
Italy is currently witnessing a heartbreaking rise in femicides, with a disturbing pattern of violence against women, often at the hands of partners, ex-partners, or family members. In 2024 alone, over a hundred women were killed, the vast majority by men they knew. The horror has continued into 2025, with cases like those of Sara Campanella and Ilaria Sula sending shockwaves through the country. Campanella, a university student in Messina, was brutally stabbed by a fellow student who had reportedly harassed her for two years. Not long after, Sula was found dead near Rome, with her former partner under investigation. These events are not isolated tragedies but rather symptoms of a deep-rooted and systemic problem.
The public response has been loud and clear. Italians, particularly women, have flooded the streets in protest. Marches on International Women’s Day drew thousands, with cities like Rome, Milan, and Naples echoing with chants against patriarchy and violence. Activist networks such as Non-Una di Meno have organized demonstrations, strikes, and symbolic acts of protest, like pouring red paint down the Spanish Steps in Rome, a haunting visual representation of the blood spilled in these gender-based killings. The protests are not just expressions of grief; they are demands for real and lasting change.
The Italian government has responded by approving a draft law that classifies femicide as a separate crime, punishable by life imprisonment. This legislation also introduces harsher penalties for stalking and abuse. While such steps are significant and necessary, many activists and legal experts warn that punitive measures alone are not enough. Critics argue that this law, although important, is largely reactive. It addresses the crime after it happens, without putting sufficient focus on prevention or on the societal structures that enable this violence in the first place.
What Italy urgently needs is a comprehensive approach to dismantling the culture of misogyny that fuels this epidemic. Legal reforms must go hand in hand with educational initiatives that teach respect, consent, and equality from an early age. Public institutions should invest in services that support survivors, shelters, helplines, free legal aid, and trauma-informed care. Awareness campaigns are also essential to shift public attitudes and challenge the normalization of male dominance and control. Moreover, data on femicide and domestic violence needs to be systematically collected and analyzed to guide evidence-based policymaking
The outrage sweeping across Italy is more than justified. Each woman’s life lost is a reminder of the urgency to act. This moment offers a critical opportunity, not only to punish the perpetrators but to change the systems that allow such violence to persist. The Italian state must not only recognize femicide as a distinct crime but also as a societal failure that demands collective reckoning and reform.