The Ambivalent Parity: The Italian Constitution and Women’s Rights

Abstract

The chapter discusses women’s condition within the Italian Constitutional State and begins by examining the origins of gender discrimination in ancient times, when women were considered inferior to men, excluded from the public and confined to the private sphere. The chapter then focuses first on the Italian constitutional framework on women’s rights to disclose the constitutional rights that are most likely to be at stake when women’s rights are under scrutiny, and then moves on to discussing the key role played by the 21 women sitting in the Constitutional Assembly who so greatly contributed to the current shape of the Italian Constitution and its sensitiveness towards women’s rights. The chapter, therefore, investigates the constitutional responses to the areas where women are involved, ranging from the family to the labour market and politics. It underlines the extent to which the above-mentioned constitutional rights have been interpreted, applied, and developed over the years. Women’s public participation in politics and the judiciary is thoroughly described, while the diverse roles of the legislator and the Italian Constitutional Court are highlighted, and the status of Italian women’s rights is also scrutinized in light of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Eventually, the chapter intends to unveil and disclose the current status of Italian women’s rights in the constitutional system without omitting taking into proper consideration the ongoing ambiguities that still justify the definition of gender equality within the Italian Constitutional State as an “ambiguous parity”.