Centre-left appeal: ‘The Government must stop the neo-Nazi rally in Trentino; it is inspired by Hitler’
The event will take place from 3 to 6 September. The exact venue has not yet been announced. There has been fierce criticism from the PD and AVS, who are calling on the authorities to stop the event
From 3 to 6 September, according to the Telegram group dedicated to the event, ‘Return to Camelot’ – a gathering organised by the Veneto Fronte Skinheads – is set to take place. The exact location has not yet been announced and will only be revealed shortly before the event, but the indication is clear: ‘Trentino region’. The approach of the event’s start date has sparked fierce controversy. The centre-left has called on the authorities to halt the initiative, which is accused of openly glorifying Nazi ideals.
The event
On social media, the organisers point out that ‘Return to Camelot’ is not just about music: it is ‘a sporting and cultural event featuring talks, book stalls and music. It is also family-friendly, with areas dedicated to children (we support European families)’. Among the cultural events on offer are ‘Mos Maiorum and martial traditions. An apology for combat and physical courage’, scheduled for Saturday 5 September, and the talks ‘Super-democracies and ideological persecution. Countering the Repression of European Nationalists in the Age of Schengen’ and ‘Italians of Europe on the March. The Future of Myth in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism’.”
The rally is likely to attract activists from various parts of Italia and Europe. Indeed, the announcement stating that the event will take place in Trentino also provides details of the nearest airports: Verona, 70 kilometres away; Bergamo, 100 kilometres away; and Venice, 120 kilometres away. In the past, the event has been organised on private premises or land. This was the case for the edition held in Treviso, which was attended by over a thousand people. This means that no special requests or authorisations are required, nor is the three-day notice period for notifying the prefecture necessary.
The Avs protest
Among the first to speak out against the event was Angelo Bonelli, an MP for the Green Left Alliance, who on Thursday 27 August announced, in a statement published on the party’s website, his intention to table a parliamentary question to the Minister of the Interior, Matteo Piantedosi. ‘In a week’s time, neo-Nazi groups from across Europe will be arriving in the Veneto and Trentino regions for the traditional “Return to Camelot” rally, organised by the Veneto Skinhead Front. A packed programme of concerts by RAC (Rock Against Communism) bands has long been circulating on social media; these will take place from 3 to 6 September and feature openly Nazi, racist, anti-Semitic and white supremacist content. This is completely unacceptable,” commented the MP.
According to Bonelli, in fact, ‘this is neither a folkloric event nor an exercise in free expression: it is the organised display of ideologies that our Constitution explicitly rejects’. The statement notes that the event is believed to have been orchestrated by the Blood&Honour network, ‘a neo-Nazi organisation subject to sanctions by the British government for incitement to terrorism. The name derives from a slogan of the Hitler Youth (Blut und Ehre), whose ideology is based on National Socialist doctrine and the promotion of white supremacy’.
