Some context, for those who don’t speak Italian: The person speaking during most of the video is named Silvia Giordano, a member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies. This protest is happening because, right now, same-sex couples living in Italy have no shared rights to property, social security and inheritance. They also can’t get married. A rough translation of what Giordano is saying:
“Mr. President (of the House of Deputies), beyond the thousands of excuses and quibbles, we’re talking here of matters of the heart, of feelings, of emotions. Because a kiss and a hug have not and will never hurt anyone. In fact, they are part of what contributes most to making us human. We want to make that clear. And so we’re going to pull back the veil and to demonstrate that there is truly nothing to be afraid of. And we, Mr. President, are not afraid.”
The deputies, members of the M5S party, then hold up signs protesting a political compromise that’s restricting the rights of LGBT Italians — while the rest turn to their colleagues and demonstrate just how unscary a kiss is.
The best line, though, comes from the President of the Chamber at the end. He can be heard saying, “Onorevole Nuti, se ha finito di baciare il collega, faccia ritirare quei cartelli,” which translates to:
“Honorable Mr. Nuti, if you’ve finished kissing your colleague, please take down those signs.”
