March 8, Europe at a crossroads between new conquests and dangerous returns to the past

One evening in March 1917, the women lining up for bread in St. Petersburg changed the course of events by demanding “bread and peace.” More than a century later, it is important to remember that March 8 did not originate as a commemoration to be honored with mimosas – which arrived in Italy only in 1946 – but as a day of protest and union mobilization, far from the historical falsehood of the alleged fire in a New York factory in 1908. In Europe in 2026, that spirit seems more relevant than ever, in a divided continent where fundamental rights oscillate between epoch-making achievements and reactionary impulses.

The most incendiary ground remains that of reproductive self-determination. France, in March 2024, set a world record by enshrining the right to abortion in the Constitution. A historic step that, however, is measured against the concrete difficulties in the territories: widespread conscientious objection and insufficient services. At the opposite extreme, Poland continues to allow abortion only in cases of rape or danger to life; in 2024, both attempts to decriminalize and access to the morning-after pill without a prescription failed. In between are countries like Malta: despite having introduced a waiver in 2023, they maintain restrictions that resulted in just five legal abortions in 2025.

On the front of gender-based violence, the European Union has tried to set a common standard by adopting, in May 2024, the first directive that harmonizes crimes such as forced marriages, online stalking, and the non-consensual distribution of intimate images. But community regulations clash with the harshness of national data: in Italy, in 2024, 113 women were killed, 99 of whom in a family or intimate context. Complicating the picture, political consensus is fraying in some areas. The case of Latvia is emblematic: in October 2025, Parliament voted to initiate the withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention, driven by campaigns against the so-called “gender ideology.”

Even on civil rights, the European divide is deep. In Hungary, a 2021 law that prohibits the “representation” of homosexuality to minors has triggered an unprecedented infringement procedure for the EU. Conversely, Spain continues the path initiated in 2023 with the “Ley Trans”, which allows for gender correction on documents. In Italy, the situation is mixed: in 2025, the Constitutional Court protected the children of same-sex couples by recognizing both mothers on the birth certificate, while Parliament made surrogacy a “universal crime”, prosecutable even if practiced abroad.

The issue of equality is also played out in the economic arena and in press freedom. To close a gender pay gap stuck at 13%, Brussels has launched the pay transparency directive, which member states must implement by June 7, 2026. At the same time, the new Anti-SLAPP regulations and the Media Freedom Act aim to protect female journalists and activists from SLAPP lawsuits and political interference, strengthening freedom of expression. In this 2026, the Europe of rights risks slipping into the normalization of exceptions and the non-implementation of good laws. The real challenge today is to “apply, fund, measure”. Just as the women of Petersburg knocked on doors for bread, European citizens are knocking on hospitals, courts, and labor offices. It is up to Europe to decide whether to respond with flowers or with actions, because rights, like democracy, only exist if they are exercised.