No woman is safe

My name is Carlotta Moratti and I am President of the Inter Campus project. I have always insisted that the term ‘Presidentessa’ should be used and not its masculine synonym, because nothing should be taken for granted and because, despite the privileges that I realise I have, being a woman and being the head of a sports project, even more so in the world of football, nothing but simple. And because you must start from the little things to get to those that are most important. Among these, gender equality is still a very difficult and distant goal. In fact, the United Nations places it among their goals to be achieved by 2030.

I was lucky enough to visit several countries to carry on our project and to achieve wonderful results on this issue.

I met Iranian girls studying sports journalism to write about football in a country that wouldn't even allow them to enter the stadium. I met little girls in Romanian orphanages who made themselves appear masculine in certain ways as well as in appearance to try to be respected. But I also saw girls wearing headscarves and uncomfortable, bulky robes running and having fun with the ball on the outskirts of Tunis. The camp was in the middle of the dumps and the girls smiled and enjoyed themselves despite having obvious psychomotor difficulties as they had never been allowed to practice a group sport, in the open air, with their male peers. A sweet and exciting satisfaction in their eyes.

Bringing girls onto the pitch is a great achievement in some countries. Especially in contexts where the responsibility of the family lies entirely with the woman, and from an early age the girls have to take care of their younger brothers and sisters and their right to play is denied. Young women, mothers.

I was amazed how the only place where I perceived the best achievements in the search for gender equality was Chiapas, in the Zapatista communities, in a country like Mexico, that is strongly macho, with a very high rate of femicides. In their caracoles  there is a desire to fight so that all women can emancipate themselves. Because as they say:

"No woman, of any age, social class, political militancy, colour, race or religious belief is safe".

That's why we at Inter Campus try, with a smile, to save and protect the young women of tomorrow.

Starting today, every week we will tell you these stories, these attempts to change what seems unchangeable, to change the course of history in our own little way.