Lercara Friddi massacre
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| Lercara Friddi massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of Fasci Siciliani | |
 Prints reproducing the massacre at Lercara Friddi at the time [1] | |
| Location | Lercara Friddi in the Province of Palermo, Sicily |
| Date | December 25, 1893 |
| Target | Villagers protesting against taxes during the Fasci Siciliani. |
Attack type | Massacre |
| Deaths | 7 or 11 killed, many wounded |
| Perpetrators | Royal Italian Army |
| Motive | Quell the protest of the peasants and miners |
The Lercara Friddi massacre took place on Christmas-day (December 25) 1893 in Lercara Friddi in the Province of Palermo (Sicily) during the Fasci Siciliani uprising.[2] According to different sources either seven[2] or eleven people[3][4][5] were killed and many wounded. (The New York Times reporting a day after the riots mentioned four people dead.[6])
At the time of the uprising the town had 18,000 inhabitants and was mainly a town of sulphur miners. Working conditions in the mines were appalling, including child labour by so-called carusi.[1]
The Fascio dei Lavoratori in Lercara Friddi had been founded between July and September 1893 among peasants and sulphur miners. On November 8, 1893, a committee was formed to negotiate with the landowners and mine-owners to improve working conditions.[2] However, the political situation was also marked by a fierce battle between the Sartorio and the Nicolosi families about who would rule the town.[2] Different "spurious" elements were present in the Fascio of Lercara Friddi that responded more to the logic of the struggle for the conquest of power between the powerful local town families, rather than the need for social emancipation of the workers.[2]
Serious disagreements emerged within the Fascio, and Bernardino Verro, the charismatic leader of the Fascio in Corleone, was asked to intervene. He arrived on December 19, 1893, and found a chaotic situation and irresponsible spending of the organisation's funds. He dissolved the organisation and nominated a committee to reorganise it. The intervention of Verro caused discontent, in particular with the former secretary Francesco Piazza. The dissenters wanted to organise a demonstration the next day, but were stopped by Verro, claiming that violence against the tax tollhouses and municipality would be counterproductive and that in the strictly organized movement in Corleone these kinds of disorders did not happen.[2] However, after Verro left, the protests did erupt.