Italy’s animal sanctuaries resist after state killed nine pigs
Summary and headline written by AI from the source article. How we work
Three years ago, authorities in Italy killed nine pigs at Progetto Cuori Liberi, an animal sanctuary in Sairano. The animals. Crusca, Crosta, Ursula, Spino, Carolina, Mercoledì, Pumba, Dorothy, and Bartolomeo, had been rescued from factory farming and were living freely.
For thirteen days before the killings, hundreds of people protested in front of the sanctuary, attempting to shield the pigs from the authorities.
The government justified the action by citing African swine fever, a disease affecting pigs and wild boar, and a policy of culling animals to control its spread. The deaths shattered the illusion that animal sanctuaries were safe from state intervention and spurred a deeper understanding of the conflict between animal welfare and systems prioritizing domination. Activists at Progetto Cuori Liberi and other sanctuaries now view their work as explicitly political, challenging what they call a “specist” system.
Following the event, a network of sanctuaries has strengthened, forming new alliances and organizing to prevent similar incidents. Though negotiations with authorities have not yet yielded guarantees against future killings, the movement is committed to remembering the lost pigs by name and continuing to advocate for animal liberation. They see sanctuaries not just as rescue facilities, but as places where a different world, one valuing all life, is actively being built.
