VITTORIO VENETO – Fighting prejudice. Fear. Marginalization. Hatred and violence. This is what Alessandra Lorenzi wants to do: eradicate homophobia. The campaign to defend homosexuals, to break down barriers created by ignorance and fear, starts online. It starts with an app.
It all started with the commitment of Alessadra Lorenzi, a 23-year-old from Vittoria, who created the Stop Homophobia app, available for Android and soon for iPhone. Alessandra got down to business. Beyond her technological expertise (making an app isn't easy!), her determination was crucial. "I created this app to help victims of homophobia, or anyone who needs support or assistance," Alessandra explains. "The app provides the numbers of all Arcigay organizations and all the listening associations in Italy. Anyone who needs a voice, or an ear, can use it. The app also lists the nearest centers, their location, and the distance to reach them. Among the hundreds of thousands of existing apps, there was none like this." So Alessandra decided to create it.
To carry out this project, she called all the community centers and associations in Italy that provide support to homosexuals. She noted that there wasn't a single one in the province of Treviso. "It's incredible that there isn't a single center like this in our area. Even Palermo has one!" Alessandra points out. Incredible, so to speak. Alesandra offers an explanation. "The institutions, the church...it's as if they weren't ready to open their doors, and their minds, to everyone.".
A closure that inspires fear. An unfounded fear that often turns into violence. "There are still so many incidents of bullying against gay people," explains Alesandra. "It seems impossible these days, but it's true. And it's not just that people often avoid, or even attack, homosexuals. They're also the ones who hide, who don't reveal their true nature, pretending to be something they're not, simply to appear as society would like them to be." As a part of society would like them to be. The part of society that needs to be changed, evolved, educated. That part of society to which Alessandra's cry is addressed, and that of all the artists participating and investing in the project's growth. To say Stop homophobia.