Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Roma's original symbol was not the
Lupa
but merely a mangy wolf . . . and be-
sides, the
Lupa
is the symbol of Rome, not as Roma. Therefore [ss lazio has] as
much right to use the
Lupa
as [as Roma].”1 it was evident from the flood of calls
made to Rome's sports radio stations that ss lazio fans were worried about lotito
demeaning their own symbol, or worse, actually considering using the lupa on
ss lazio's jerseys.
This was an interesting move by lotito, considering that he had recently
(2009) purchased an american bald eagle to act as official team mascot. Yet, even
though the bird is named olympia, very few ss lazio fans associate the eagle
with Zeus or Greece. instead, as so many pointed out in the wake of lotito's
comment, the eagle accompanied the Roman legions into battle. The lupa, it
was said, was never a battle emblem. Throughout my research in Rome, fans re-
peatedly returned to their understanding of these two symbols as a key topic of
discussion.
augusto, a 32-year-old waiter and ss lazio fan, dismisses the lupa. “The ea-
gle,” he explained, “was with those who fought for Rome—and those who fought
for Rome built Rome. That wolf is just a symbol of the whorish behavior of Ro-
man women.” augusto's explanation of the symbols reflects the deep commit-
ment of many football fans in Rome to understanding the history of the city. and
while his narrative is less than accurate, it is difficult to say whether working-
class Romans would discuss this history with such an impassioned point of view
without the lens of football.
manuele, a founding member of
Fedayn
(an as Roma ultra group), ex-
plained
romanità
to me in simple terms:
“Romanità
is the thing that makes Ro-
mans different from and superior to any others. it links us with the past and fu-
ture of the city, and our city is more steeped in glory and conquest, in veneration
and honor, than any city in the world. others love their cities, as they should, but
when looking for glory, they have no choice but to envy us.” Those populating the
ultra groups are especially prone to understanding Rome as a city of glory and
conquest, as well as of honor and veneration—ideals that drove mussolini's proj-
ect to transform, aggrandize, and render more fascist the center of Rome (painter
2005, 1-5). however, there is an important distinction between the
romanità
of
the ultras and that of fascism. fascism utilized
romanità
not only to lend it-
self legitimacy by linking its rule with imperial Rome, but also to undermine
the power of
campanilismo
in the provinces.
Romanità
was to be the unifying
narrative of the italian fascist state. Thus, its universal aspects were highlighted
(falasca-Zamponi 1997, 90).
in Rome,
romanità
motivates an inversion of the universal mission, being
reserved, rather, as the rarified domain of Romans. it is not a universal phenom-
enon or mission, but what separates Romans from the milanese, for example.
Nor is it a will to unity as part of italian nationalism. instead,
romanità
is useful
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