Years of Lead
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 Years of Lead    | |
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The Years of Lead were a political phenomenon related to the Cold War, characterized by "terrorism" and the strategy of tension. The name is most commonly applied to Italy, but has also been applied to Belgium (the années de plomb or "Bloody Eighties", referring to the Brabant massacres), Brazil, Argentina and Morocco.[citation needed]
Related Quotation
| Page | Quote | Author |
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| Strategy of tension | “When you were on the Right you were not supposed to attack the State or its representatives. You were supposed to attack civilians, women, children, innocent people from outside the political arena. For one simple reason: To force the Italian public to turn to the State turn to the regime and ask for greater security. This was precisely the role of the right in Italy. It placed itself at the service of the State which created a strategy aptly called the "Strategy of Tension" in so far as they had to get ordinary people to accept that at any moment over a period of 30 years, from 1960 to the mid eighties a state of emergency could be declared. So, people would willingly trade part of their freedom for the security of being able to walk the streets, go on trains or enter a bank. This is the political logic behind all the bombings. They remain unpunished because the state cannot condemn itself.” | Vincenzo Vinciguerra |
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