The 17 October Movement: the social media accounts where the protests are organised
The 17 October Movement has announced on social media that it is organising ongoing protests in eight Italian cities, is coordinating upcoming events via Instagram and Telegram, and is providing legal support for protesters detained during the demonstrations on 17 and 18 October
The announcement of a permanent protest, videos of participants calling for “the redistribution of wealth” and an email address to contact if you have been stopped by the police. These are some of the first posts published on the Instagram page by 17 October Movement, the group formed amidst the protests that swept through several Italian cities – and particularly Milan – last weekend, on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 October.
In its profile description, the Movement introduces itself with these words: “We are the ones in the squares. The ones who see the only violence in the police truncheons”. Alongside these messages of protest, there is also an invitation to join the group’s Telegram channel, described as a space for discussion and organising upcoming events. Social media thus becomes a tool for coordinating initiatives and keeping the movement active even after the weekend’s demonstrations.
The first post published on the page contains a direct message: “You are the violent ones who have denied us a future; now we are taking that future for ourselves”. The text goes on to reject the accusations levelled at the protesters: “We reject all these accusations out of hand. It is this system that kills us that is violent.” These words reflect the communication strategy adopted by the Movement, which rejects allegations of violence during the protests and places the blame on the system against which it is mobilising.
The Instagram profile is the platform through which the Movement announces its upcoming initiatives. A pinned post lists the cities involved in the ongoing mobilisation programme: Milan, Bologna, Turin, Rome, Florence, Padua, Bari and Genoa. The event takes place every Saturday at 3 pm, with the aim of ensuring the protests continue and keeping spaces for participation active.
Among the first pieces of content published is a video showing a group of young people – who took part in the looting of several shops in central Milan last weekend – handing over some of the stolen goods to a homeless person. The video is accompanied by the caption ‘Proletarian expropriation, redistribution of wealth’.
