Discover Palermo saying NO to Mafia will give you the unique opportunity to learn about Mafia and the civil anti-mafia movement. While wandering around Palermo’s magnificent old center, learn about Mafia, which has always been a strong presence in the country. Some Italians, instead of accepting the situation, raised their head and proved that Mafia can be defeated with a constant fight for legality. Among them were the two magistrates Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, murdered by the organized criminality 25 years ago. Their memory is still honored in the mural above, painted in Palermo’s city center.
During the sustainable tour Discover Palermo saying NO to Mafia, you will uncover a city that is finally standing up to the Mafia’s extortionate racket. You will see the Teatro Massimo, the open-air market “Il Capo,” Piazza della Memoria (Memorial dedicated to Mafia-killed prosecutors and judges), Piazza Beati Paoli, the Cathedral, the City Hall, Piazza Magione. Each stop offers an opportunity to reflect on the Mafia’s realities and the civic movement against Mafioso power (which was born here in Sicily).
Along the way, you’ll meet retailers who have refused to pay the pizzo and joined the ethical consumer campaign “I pay who does not pay”. Addiopizzo is promoting this campaign to support those who have chosen to rebel against the Mafia. Indeed, Addiopizzo is a grass-roots organization that supports social justice and calls for a “culture revolution” against the Mafia. It is made up of all the individuals who identify themselves with the motto “who pays money for protection is someone without dignity”.
In a broader anti-mafia front, Addiopizzo is a non-party voluntary organization whose specific area of action is the development of a virtuous economy free from the mafia using the device of anti-mafia critical consumption. Beside offering free legal, psychological, and corporate support to victims of extortion, the organization also walks beside them as they leave the Mafia behind.
Among the victims of Mafia there are the owners of Antica Focacceria San Francesco, one of Palermo’s oldest eateries known for its “cibo da strada palermitano” (street food), where the tour ends. Here you will learn about how the owners had the courage to speak out against extortion.