Franchini, Mauro 1930-2012

One of the stalwarts of the anarchist movement in Carrara was the quarry worker Mauro Franchini. His father was a miner and he himself worked in the marble quarries of Carrara.

In 1945 he was one of the founders of the Federazione Anarchica Italiana alongside Alfonso Failla and Ugo Mazzuchelli. With them he was involved in many anarchist initiatives in the area. He was one of those who reconstructed the marble bridge at Carrara after the fascists had demolished it with explosives in 1945. He was also involved in the establishment of the monument to the anarchist Gaetano Bresci in the area and local the monument to the victims of fascism and was involved in many rallies, debates and public meetings. In recent years he took part in the activities of the Malatesta Circle at Gragnana and of the Goliardo Fiashi Circle in Carrara, as well as meeting of the Germinal group of the Italian Anarchist Federation.

Mauro was a true craftsman and specialist in marble work. The economic situation meant that he had had to travel to many parts of the world to gain employment, including Africa, Albania, Arabia, and Asia. He joined the anarchist partisan groups at a young age during World War Two. In the post-war period he was involved in many struggles in the workplace and the neighbourhood, including the 40 day strike in the Carrara marble quarries in 1963. He was a delegate to many congresses and meetings of the FAI.
At the end of the 1990s he took an active part in the ultimately successful defence of the Germinal office on the main square of Carrara which had been retaken physically from the fascists in 1945 and which the mayor wished to requisition.

In the last year of his life he was very ill but continued to take part in anarchist activity as much as he could.

He died on November 22nd, 2012.

Nick Heath

Sources:
http://www.umanitanova.org/n-37-anno-92/mauro-franchini

http://militants-anarchistes.info/spip.php?article8938