How far the decline…
Bella Ciao was once a song of defiance, sung by Italian partisans as they fought Nazi and Fascist occupiers in the hills. The song’s origins go back even further, to the 19th-century rice workers who used it as a cry against brutal labor conditions. For generations, Bella Ciao stood for freedom, sacrifice, and the dignity of struggle.
Today, Bella Ciao may have been the clarion call for a psychotic assassin. Tyler James Robinson, arrested for the brutal killing of conservative activist, Charlie Kirk, on September 10th, had chiseled lyrics from Bella Ciao in bullet casings, recovered at the crime scene by police.
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The latest use of Bella Ciao is indicative of its decline. In the last few years, the song was commodified by the very corporate media once challenged by its message. Netflix’s hit series La Casa de Papel (Money Heist) made the song a global pop phenomenon, not as a call to liberation but as a stylish soundtrack for fictional bank robbers. That placement was no accident: Netflix promoted the series worldwide with Bella Ciao at its core, transforming a resistance anthem into a marketing device.
From there the floodgates opened. Bella Ciao has been remixed into club anthems, blasted at soccer matches, repurposed in political rallies, and recycled across TikTok and YouTube. The song appears in commercials and corporate campaigns, stripped of historical weight and sold as background noise for rebellion-lite. What was once a voice against tyranny has become a jingle.
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Bella Ciao has now become a song attached to a horrible murder. Tyler James Robinson, 22 years old, is said to have shot and killed Charlie Kirk, from a rooftop perch, at a public event at Utah Valley University on September 10. Authorities recovered a .30-06 Mauser bolt-action rifle with a scope near the place where the shooting happened. Several bullet casings (both spent and unfired) were found. Some of the unfired casings were engraved with messages. One of the unfired casings bore the inscription: “O Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Bella ciao, ciao, ciao!” — a reference to the Italian song Bella Ciao. This is among a group of messages, including “Hey fascist! Catch!” and others, also engraved.
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The presence of Bella Ciao suggests that the suspect may have been making an anti-fascist statement or seeing the act through a political/ideological lens. However, investigators have not made a definitive motive public.
The use of Bella Ciao indicates that some of the messaging in this crime comes with political or ideological undertones. That shifts public perception, media framing, and also how investigators interpret the evidence. Understanding the connection helps in assessing how political polarization, symbolism, and identity intersect with criminal violence in today’s environment.
Bella Ciao, a melody born of sacrifice and solidarity, has devolved into pop hits, corporate jingles, and the musings of a murderer. The words that once carried the power of resistance now serve the intentions of people and organizations far removed from plight of rice workers in Lombardia.
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Although the latest use of the song signifies a nihilistic demise, the song can still inspire noble causes. The most famous use of Bella Ciao follows:
Italian Resistance (1943–45)
The most historically significant use: Italian partisans sang Bella Ciao while fighting against Mussolini’s Fascist forces and Nazi occupiers during World War II. The song became a symbol of sacrifice and solidarity, later adopted across Europe as the quintessential anti-fascist anthem.
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1960s–70s Student and Worker Movements
In Italy, Bella Ciao resurfaced during the postwar labor struggles and student protests of 1968. Across Europe, especially in France, left-wing movements and trade unions adopted the song, making it a staple in rallies against authoritarianism and capitalist exploitation.
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Anti-Dictatorship and Liberation Movements
During the Iranian revolution in 1979, Bella Ciao was adapted into Farsi and sung against the Shah’s regime. In Turkey, the song was translated into Turkish as “Çav Bella,” an anthem for leftist and Kurdish movements.
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Modern Protests and Global Movements
Latin America: Bella Ciao was adopted in Chile, Brazil, and Argentina by student and workers’ movements. In the 2019 protests in Hong Kong (2019 Protests), the song became the repertoire of defiance. In 2022, in Ukraine, Bella Ciao became a resistance anthem after Russia’s invasion. Bella Ciao was sung at some rallies during Occupy Wall Street and the Arab Spring.
Editor’s Note: The first photograph is an album cover for the song to underscore its connection to the Italian partisans' fight against Fascisim; the next photograph shows a poster for the Netflix series from Spain, La Casa de Papel; the punk rock band Vox Pop recorded their version, and a photograph of the carbonated drink from Italy that bears the name of the song. A photograph of Tyler James Robinson, police clam, from a surveillance camera and his mug shot after arrest. A photograph of Italian women working the rice fields of Lombardia, where the song is said to have been created in the 1800s; two photographs underscore the revolutionary zeal of Bella Ciao - an Italian partisan soldier in World War II and French students at the 1968 protests.
The murder of Charlie Kirk is a tragedy and a blow to the American principle of free speech. Violence against a public figure — regardless of one's agreement or disagreement with his views — is the very antithesis of our country's great tradition of open dialogue.
We, at PRIMO, extend our deepest condolences to Charlie Kirk's family, friends, and colleagues at this difficult time.