Bagheria-Casteldaccia Anti-Mafia March

A march for memory and legality

The Bagheria-Casteldaccia Anti-Mafia March is a civil event that, every year at the end of February, brings thousands of people together along the roads of the municipalities of Casteldaccia and nearby Bagheria, in the province of Palermo, in the heart of Sicily. It is not a traditional festival or fair: it is a massive procession of students, teachers, parishes, unions, associations, and institutions marching united against the mafia, drugs, and corruption.

The origins: from 1983 to today

The first march dates back to 1983, just a few months after the murder of Pio La Torre, the political and union leader killed by Cosa Nostra on April 30, 1982, and promoter of the Rognoni-La Torre Law, which introduced the crime of mafia association and the confiscation of illicit assets into the Italian legal system. Since then, the march has been organized by the Pio La Torre Study and Cultural Initiatives Center and has been held uninterruptedly for over forty years, becoming one of the most deeply rooted anti-mafia demonstrations in the Palermo area.

The Strada dei Valloni: from death to life

The route is not accidental. The Strada dei Valloni, which connects Bagheria to Casteldaccia, was infamously known during the Second Mafia War as an escape route for hitmen in the so-called "triangle of death," the area between Bagheria, Casteldaccia, and Altavilla Milicia. Every year, the march flips that meaning: walking that road is an act of reappropriation and redemption by an entire community, which symbolically renames it the "road of life."

A choral event

The demonstration involves schools of all levels, parishes, municipalities, unions, anti-mafia and university associations, the ANPI (National Association of Italian Partisans), the Libera association, youth city councils, and numerous civic groups. The procession starts in Bagheria and ends in Piazza Matrice in Casteldaccia, where a stage hosts closing speeches by representatives of institutions, the Church, and the world of associations. In recent years, participants have included the Archbishop of Palermo, Monsignor Corrado Lorefice, and the president of the regional anti-mafia commission.

Why participate

More than just an event for spectators, the Bagheria-Casteldaccia Anti-Mafia March is a participatory experience, deeply linked to Sicily's civil identity and its history of fighting organized crime. It is an opportunity to walk alongside new generations, listen to testimonies, and keep the memory of those who opposed mafia power alive.