Pride Wave, four marches today in Comacchio, Ostana, Ostuni, and Salerno. Piazzoni (Arcigay): "While homosexuality is being criminalized in Niger, Italy is talking about remigration: we need a humane policy that puts rights at the center."“
July 4, 2026 – Onda Pride, the large-scale national demonstration in support of LGBTQIA+ rights organized by Arcigay and other local and national associations, continues today with four events that form an arc from the Comacchio lagoon to the Monviso mountains, from the white Puglia of Ostuni to the Salerno seafront. Comacchio Pride meets at 6:30 pm in Piazzetta Trepponti, Monviso Pride departs at 4 pm from the town square of Ostana, a small Alpine village in the province of Cuneo, Ostuni Pride gathers at 5 pm at Porta San Demetrio, while Salerno Pride meets at 6 pm in Piazza Vittorio Veneto.
“"While today we fill the squares of Italy with the colors of pride and vindication," says Gabriele Piazzoni, general secretary of Arcigay, "the situation for homosexuals in Niger has worsened: the new penal code, promulgated a few days ago, has further criminalized homosexuality, and at least forty people have already been arrested. This persecution adds to that already underway in other countries on that continent, and overall, it represents a worsening climate that legitimizes violence and pushes people to flee, risking their lives at sea. While all this is happening, in Italy the ruling parties are discussing remigration and mass deportations: something we find inconceivable. The truth is that behind every person who flees, there is a story of persecution, violence, oppression, denial of opportunities and of one's identity. We need a more humane policy, one that puts rights at the center. Today, from Comacchio to Ostana, from Ostuni to Salerno, we say that "Rights are not negotiable. And those fleeing persecution must find welcome in Italy, not rejection," Piazzoni concludes.
