The Italian Consulate General in Argentina, together with the B’nai B’rith Jewish association, organised a photographic exhibition on Gino Bartali entitled ”Righteous among Nations, cycling champions and Humankind” at Bahia Blanca. The exhibition is hosted in the historic building of the ‘Bolsa de Comercio di Bahia Blanca’, and is part of the initiatives launched by the Italian Presidency of the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance), an inter-governmental organization that coordinates and stimulates the involvement of member Countries in safeguarding and handing down of the memory of the Holocaust.
When opening the exhibition, Consul General Antonio Petrarulo expressed satisfaction over the great interest shown by young people abroad for the event and recalled Italy’s commitment to safeguard and hand down the memory of the Holocaust. On its part, the president of the Bolsa de Comercio, Carlos Arecco, recalled Bartali’s successes in sports and in life, by tracing the fundamental phases in the champion’s life while Raul Woscoff, the representative of B’nai B’rith in Bahia Blanca, illustrated the conditions of Jews in Italy after the adoption of the racial laws, highlighting how they triggered a profound response by Italian society also thanks to the role of the Catholic Church, which made it possible to save thousands of lives and how the story of Gino Bartali is a clear example of this.
The exhibition, which will run until 17 April, will be visited by the students of the local schools thanks to a programme developed by the Italian Consulate. The exhibition will subsequently be hosted in the ‘Normal’ School of Bahia Blanca for a whole day, at which Consul General Petrarulo will meet with the students. After that, the exhibition will be displayed at the Dante Alighieri Italian School in San Carlos de Bariloche and then move on to other towns in the Consulate’s jurisdiction.
