Jolanda Crivelli's story is similar to that of Giuseppina Ghersi. That of a young woman targeted by partisans for her links with the fascist regime. Even so, the contours of the story are blurred, but what is certain is that over the years it has been enriched with unverified details and spread with an irrelevant image. A photo of a woman hanging from a tree not shown by Jolanda Crivelli.
For those in a hurry:
- On the occasion of April 25, 2024, the story of Jolanda Crivelli, a twenty-year-old girl from Cesena killed by partisans, circulated again.
- Over the years, the story has been enriched with unverified elements considered certain.
- Among these is also a photo of a woman hanging by one foot from a tree.
- The photo of a woman hanging from a tree does not show Jolanda Crivelli.
- In fact, it is a work of art by Norwegian Hilde Krohn Huse.
Analyzes
Let's see a screenshot of one of the messages being checked. In the description there is a long text, of which we report the part linked to the photo:
Jolanda Crivelli, killed by communist partisans and left hanging from a tree for days.
How the story of Jolanda Crivelli is told
One of the bloodiest versions of the story is told in an article in Century of Italy. In the article we read the story of Jolanda Crivelli, a twenty-year-old young woman from Cesena, who returned to her hometown on April 26, 1945. Recently widowed by an officer of the M Battalion, the young woman had just meet in Cesena. with his mother, who lived alone. However, upon her arrival, Jolanda was immediately recognized by her fellow citizens, who denounced her as a “fascist, wife of a fascist.” Still according to what we read in the article, the young woman was the subject of violence and brutality. She was beaten, tortured and “probably raped,” and stripped naked in front of a crowd. In front of the city prisons – the article continues – Crivelli was tied to a tree and shot. His naked body was put on display for two days as a warning to other fascists. Only then was his mother allowed to bury him.
The added elements
However, the article presents unverified information as if it were certain. In 1945, journalist Piero Pasini told the same story in this article: Cesena Murders by Partisans 1945/46. As the collective against historical revisionism Nicoletta Bourbaki points out, the protagonist is the same but with another name: Aurada Gridelli. A little over twenty years old and pregnant, after the lynching, the spitting and the murders – we do not read of sexual violence – the body of the young woman was not bloated and hanging from a tree, but was lying on a lawn, riddled with small wounds. as if they had also shot him with hunting pellets.”
The artwork
Beyond the story, the image that accompanies the story is also added without control. Both in publications on Facebook and in articles on Century of Italy: a woman hanging by one foot from a tree. Used in this way, the image tricks the reader into thinking it is a historical photo. But this is not the case. In fact, the photo of a woman hanging from a tree does not show Jolanda Crivelli killed by partisans, but the artist Hilde Krohn Huse, protagonist of her own work entitled Hanging in the woods. You can also read more about the artist and his work in an article in Guardian from August 2015.
Conclusions
On the occasion of April 25, 2024, the story of Jolanda Crivelli, a twenty-year-old girl from Cesena killed by partisans, circulated again. Over the years, the story has been enriched with unverified elements considered certain. Among these is also a photo of a woman hanging by one foot from a tree. The photo of a woman hanging from a tree does not show Jolanda Crivelli. In fact, it is a work of art by Hilde Krohn Huse.
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