Fasci Siciliani
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The Fasci Siciliani, short for Fasci Siciliani dei Lavoratori, were a popular movement of democratic and socialist inspiration that arose in Sicily in the years between 1889 and 1894. The Fasci gained
Popular depiction of the crackdown on the Fasci Siciliani (Il movimento dei fasci siciliani dei lavoratori, 1955, by Onofrio and Minico Ducato)
Bernardino Verro, one of the leaders of the Fasci in 1894
Prime Minister Francesco Crispi
The heads of the Fasci Siciliani in the courtroom cage at the trial in April 1894
Carusu
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Carusu is the Sicilian word for "boy" and is derived from the Latin carus which means "dear". In the mid-1800s through the early 1900s in Sicily, carusu was used to denote a "mine-boy", a labourer in
Fasci Siciliani
…by large owners who controlled the storage market and pocketed all the profits. The minimum-age measure was meant to improve the situation for the carusi, minors that worked in conditions of near-slavery that sparked public outrage and inspired many complaints. The success of the movement alarmed the…
Group of carusi in the sulfur mines of Sicily, 1894
Carusi (boys) before a sulfur mine, 1899 (Photo: Eugenio Interguglielmi)
Group of carusi in the sulfur mines of Sicily, 1894