About Breaking taboos in Italy - Opening an exclusively male ritual to women
Every year, the Italian town of Viterbo honors its patron saint, Santa Rosa, with a unique procession. A 30-metre-high sculpture has traditionally been carried through the town by more than 100 men. Now, women are challenging that exclusionary custom. Viterbo is an Italian town with a centuries-old tradition. Every year, on 3 September, more than a hundred men carry the huge Macchina di Santa Rosa sculpture - standing almost 30 meters tall - through the old town. For many, this ritual is a defining part of their identity. But Viterbo is changing, and a new generation is questioning why this tradition is reserved for men. At the heart of this development is 13-year-old Stella. She was the first girl to be accepted into the Mini-Macchina club - the first step for children hoping to one day become fully-fledged Macchina bearers. Now she's preparing for her most important challenge. For the first time, she's allowed to take part in what's known as the steep stage to the Santuario di Santa Rosa, a symbolic highlight of the ritual. One of the bearers
Breaking taboos in Italy - Opening an exclusively male ritual to women is presented by DW Documentary. Its listed runtime is 28 minutes. The source link and publisher attribution are provided with the embedded film.
As a society documentary, Breaking taboos in Italy - Opening an exclusively male ritual to women uses breaking, taboos, italy as its central frame. Social documentaries work best as invitations to examine systems through lived experience. Distinguish individual testimony from wider claims, and consider which institutions, incentives and inequalities shape the choices shown.
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Documentary details and original source
- Title
- Breaking taboos in Italy - Opening an exclusively male ritual to women
- Category
- Society
- Runtime
- 28 minutes
- Language
- English
- Publisher
- DW Documentary
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