The latest people to join the twitter war bandwagon are Jim Carrey and Alessandra Mussolini. While the former is an actor and comedian, known for his work in films like The Mask and The Truman Show, Alessandra is an Italian Parliamentarian and also the grand daughter of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini.
What Happened?
Jim Carrey has been known for posting political cartoons. On 30 March 2019, Carrey tweeted a cartoon with the caption, “If you’re wondering what fascism leads to, just ask Benito Mussolini and his mistress Claretta.”
The cartoon depicted Benito Mussolini and his lover Claretta, hung upside down just as they were in Milan after their execution at the hands of Italian communist partisans in 1945.
Alessandra Mussolini took offence to it and replied to the tweet, calling him a “bastard”.
Alessandria’s Fight to Protect Her Grandfather’s Name
In October 2018, as reported by Haaretz, Alessandra had announced her intentions of taking legal action against posts which showed her grandfather in a bad light. She has always remained a defender of how her grandfather is portrayed.
On 17 October 2018, she tweeted that she would “monitor” posts about Benito Mussolini and take action against any that disrespects him.
According to Haaretz, heirs are entitled to file defamation complaints on behalf of their deceased relatives, under Italian law. This has seldom been enforced.
Jewish Community vs Alessandra Mussolini
After coming to power in 1922, Benito Mussolini had established a totalitarian and fascist regime in Italy. Under his rule, especially during the years of Nazi influence, there occurred anti-semitic plundering. Jews were not treated well and several accounts came to light where they were even denied basic rights.
Guri Schwarz, adjunct professor at the University of Pisa, told The New York Times:
“Of the 45,000 Jews counted in Mussolini’s census of 1938, about 8,000 died in Nazi camps. About 7,000 managed to flee. About 30,000 lived in hiding before being liberated by allied troops.”
Thus, when Alessandra’s tweet came out, the Jewish community took it upon themselves to see that their sentiment against it does not go unnoticed. The former President of the Jewish Community, Rome Riccardo Pacifici, told Haaretz:
“We don’t know whether she had a nervous breakdown or thought she could reap political benefits [from this], but Mussolini’s threats were outrageous, even more so since she is an Italian member of the European Parliament.”
A Twitter campaign was launched against Alessandra where a number of users were sharing stories of anti-semitic treatment during WWII and how it had come to haunt the families in the present day.
These tweets were accompanied with hashtags such as #MussoliniDimettiti (Meaning “Mussolini Resign”) and #LeggiRazzialiInfamiaItaliana (Meaning: “Racial Laws Italian disgrace”).
As reported by Haaretz, Italy, in 2018, marked the 80th anniversary of the Racial Laws which were promulgated under the fascist regime of Benito Mussolini. These included the expulsion of Jewish students and teachers from public schools, the barring of individuals Jews from holding public positions and seizure of business and property.
Alessandra’s Response to Jim Carrey
As if calling him a “bastard” was not enough, Alessandra – a member of the European Parliament – went all guns blazing on Jim Carrey, asking him to draw further pictures.
Jim Carrey, however, has not responded to any of her tweets so far.
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