Can and Should a Religious Symbol Be Passive? Pasquale Annicchino’s Doubts over Lautsi v. Italy
In Lautsi v. Italy (2011), the European Court of Human Rights considered whether a crucifix displayed in an Italian public-school classroom violated the right to religious freedom of non-Catholic students. While a chamber of the Court decided in favor of the students and their parent, the Grand Chamber later sided with the Italian government and found the crucifix to be a passive symbol that did not infringe their rights. In this video, Pasquale Annicchino explains that, while the Catholic Church won the legal battle in Lautsi, it lost the war by accepting that the ultimate symbol of Christianity be culturalized and trivialized in order for its display to be allowed in educational settings. Annicchino believes that religious groups should be the first to object to such reframing and restructuring of religion, even to maintain a specific presence in public spaces.
