«Salvate casa Lussu», Joyce's historic home in the Marche region for sale

There are many memories of Joyce and Emilio, the olive tree and the graft, in the house in Fermo, in the San Tommaso area, in the Marche region. The house of Joyce Salvadori Lussu and her family is up for sale . His nephew Tommaso made it known on social media . The house holds thoughts, memories and values. Joyce was a partisan, captain of the Justice and Freedom brigades, feminist, poet, writer, translator, ecologist, anticipator of issues that are now at the center of public debate (the role of women, respect for the environment, the repudiation of any war , the strenuous defense of all minorities). In 1961 he received the silver medal for military valor in Cagliari. She spent the years following the death of her husband, Emilio Lussu, writer, partisan and politician, founder of the Sardinian Action Party, in the villa in Fermo.

THE APPEAL – There is a real risk that, with the sale to private individuals, a great historical and cultural heritage could be lost. A spontaneous mobilization has started from Sardinia and the Marches to ensure that the nineteenth-century residence is protected and valued . Progressive deputy Francesca Ghirra underlines, in a note, the need for "the villa to be acquired as public property". Ghirra adds that «we are sorry and worried about the news of the sale of the house. Acquiring the villa, enhancing it and making it usable would be an extraordinary way of honoring the story of Joyce Lussu, of the battles for the liberation of our country and of the principles on which our Republic is founded. In fact, it is a special place, not only because a protagonist of the history of the twentieth century lived there, but because during the Resistance it became a refuge for allied officers and soldiers and, later, a crossroads for cultural exchanges, frequented by poets, writers and intellectuals . We will present questions, amendments and agendas to the Chamber at the first useful measure to urge the Government to acquire it as public property". Similar initiatives have been implemented by parliamentarians from the Marches who have asked Minister Sangiuliano to intervene. Also at the forefront is the writer Silvia Ballestra, who has dedicated a dense biography to Joyce Salvadori Lussu: «In these walls everything speaks of her, of Emilio, of the Marches and Sardinia and also of Giacinta and Guglielmo Salvadori. A house full of charm and history. We have to save her. It must go back to being a space for meetings, culture and reflection».

THE VALUES – The president of the Circolo Fratelli Rosselli Foundation, Valdo Spini, also takes a position, together with Nadia Urbinati, professor of political science at Columbia University in New York. «The residence - they declare - is a heritage that should be preserved and destined to pass on Joyce's memory and work, hosting a Study Center». He trusts in public intervention. The idea emerges of joining forces and energies to develop a project proposal that outlines the future of the villa in Fermo. An (unscheduled) campaign has been launched with the hope that the institutions, at various levels, can offer a useful contribution to the cause. It is not the defense of a distant past, but the desire to preserve very current values of which Joyce and Emilio have been faithful and consistent witnesses.