Freedom of Religion Crucified?

This article explores the issue of the mandatory display of the crucifix in Italian public schools, which is regulated by acts dating back to the 1920s. Italian jurisprudence on the matter has been oscillating, while the Constitutional Court has repeatedly refused to take a position on this issue. The 2011 decision of the European Court of Human Rights in the Lautsi case put an end to a nine year-long judicial odyssey. The Court argued that the decision as to whether a crucifix should be displayed in public classrooms belongs to each European state. By doing so, it renounced to play a universalistic role in favour of national constitutional systems. However, a number of questions remain open for Italy: specifically, the question of the presence of religious symbols in public spaces; their relationship with the notions of a democratic, pluralistic, secular society and neutrality of the state; and the limits to both freedom of religion and freedom from religion at individual and collective levels.