Is Italy’s far right leader Giorgia Meloni anti-women?

The far right leader, Giorgia Meloni is, in high probability, going to be the next Prime Minister and first ever female PM of Italy. Normally this would bring an image of a national leader who is pro-women rights and has agendas lined up to protect those rights. But Meloni’s recent acts have questioned her true nature and that if she in fact is anti-women?

On election day, Meloni posted a video of herself on social media holding two melons in front of her chest and smiling into the camera as she said, “25 September [voting day], I’ve said everything”. In Italian Meloni means melons, and it is also a slang for breasts. The video clip was distasteful and a clear blow to feminism, and also raised brows and questions on whether Giorgia Meloni would carry feminism principles as first female Prime Minister of Italy. This was also a surprise for many analysts as the Brothers of Italy leader had projected being a woman and a mother as key points during her campaign.

Keeping the incident of melons aside, Meloni has tread her way towards victory by projecting herself as a strong woman who is leading a party full of men and against many powerful men, her coalition allies – Matteo Salvini, leader of the far-right party League and Silvio Berlusconi, the three-time former prime minister who leads Forza Italia. One thing Meloni is very clear about – she underlines that she is against “pink quotas” and that roles must be achieved by people strictly through merit and not on basis of gender.

“Not only might we have the first female prime minister but we also have a large number of women who were elected to parliament,” said Lavinia Mennuni, a Brothers of Italy councillor in Rome. “But frankly, it is not about whether Meloni is a woman or not – she is simply a very good leader, someone who is determined and coherent. We need to stop attributing feminist labels to everything.”