RUL Report #3.4 Why you should know Basaglia’s revolution

Why you should know Franco Basaglia: Italy is famous for one of the most important revolutions in the field of mental health. In 1978, a law was passed by the Italian Government that resulted in the closure of all mental health asylums. The powerful experience of activism started from a mental health asylum in Gorizia was instrumental in the passing of this law. The action was led by Franco Basaglia, an Italian psychiatrist, and his group. Basaglia was supported by a large grass-root movement consisting of mental health workers, intellectuals, patients and families, leftist activists and regular citizens.
Franco Basaglia was one of the most important intellectuals of the country in which I was born and grew up, and his experience as a psychiatrist shaped my thoughts and ideals on the meaning of being a mental health professional. Despite its importance, I became familiar with his work only after graduation. There is a clear blind spot in Italian academia on the fundamental role that Franco Basaglia played in the development of contemporary psychiatry. There are many
explanations for the oblivion of this relevant political experience: Franco Basaglia was a radical critic of the institutions. He brought a radical vision of psychiatry as a discipline into the academic discourse, highlighting its political dimension, and criticizing the abuse of power and control by medical institutions. Despite widespread support from grassroots movements and civil society Franco Basaglia faced strong opposition from institutional psychiatry and Academia and, which prevented Basaglia’s group from fully achieving their goals.