#IOCISONO
THE NEW ISSUE OF VANITY FAIR
DEDICATED TO THOSE ON THE FRONT LINE AGAINST CORONAVIRUS.
ALL REVENUE WILL BE DONATING TO PAPA GIOVANNI XXIII HOSPITAL IN BERGAMO.
Milan, 24 March 2020 – Having published a special number dedicated to Milan and Italy, which was distributed free to newsstands in Lombardy, Vanity Fair continues its efforts to transmit a message of hope, strength, courage and, above all, gratitude to those who are fighting this global war against the Covid-19 virus on the Italian front line.
Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, factory and office workers, volunteers and others involved in the struggle are the focus of the new issue of the magazine edited by Simone Marchetti, in newsstands for two weeks from 25 March, whose entire revenue will be donated to the Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital in Bergamo, one of the hardest hit at the moment.
“Bergamo and its
hospitals have found themselves the unwilling epicenter of an unprecedented
healthcare earthquake. The pressure on our entire region is unrelenting,
and the health service is our front line. Doctors and nurses are doing the
impossible. We have to give them all the support we possibly can. We need
people and equipment to handle a demand for care which is overwhelming the
current capacity, even though this has multiplied since the start of this
emergency. So we thank Vanity Fair and Condé Nast for standing by us with all
the power of their communication channels and a generosity that does them great
credit”, says Giorgio Gori, mayor of Bergamo.
The cover of the magazine features Caterina Conti, a 39-year-old lung specialist at Bergamo hospital, which, more than any other, has reached its limits of intensive care patients.
And while the previous edition of Vanity Fair yelled #IoSonoMilano (a hashtag that started in Milan and spread throughout Italy before being picked up worldwide in a universal chorus of voices both famous and otherwise, and reposted by international celebrities), the cover of the new edition states #IOCISONO, a message of presence and civil and human commitment that becomes a heroic example to all.
“But don’t call these doctors, nurses, essential workers and volunteers heroes, because they themselves do not wish to be defined as such. They are professionals with an extraordinary sense of duty; workers at the very limits of their strength and possibilities. For us, they have become the reflection of an Italy which is strong and full of hope, a country that has always managed to survive the hardest of times. Their stories and their work – told in this issue of Vanity Fair – become a human account that will stay with us forever, not only during this emergency”, says Simone Marchetti, editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair.
Inside the magazine are accounts of the daily battles of the people who are grappling with an unprecedented emergency. The many tales of courage include that of a family of pharmacists in Salerno who are continuing to work for their community despite the fact that their daughter is infected; a cashier and a newsdealer who are in contact with the public every day; a factory worker producing essential goods; a volunteer in the Marche delivering medicines to the homes of people with impaired immune systems and a GP in Brescia province, speaking of the difficulties they are currently experiencing.
It’s a special edition that brings together stories of success, dedication and strength, such as that of Professor Tiberio, who has refurbished an intensive care department in Padua hospital, and Patrizia Barbieri, mayor of Piacenza, with an account of quarantine from a woman who never gives up, and the solidarity shown by restaurants and chefs who are providing free meals for healthcare staff.
Alongside interviews with Gennaro Arma, captain of the Diamond Princess, recently back in Italy and widely praised for his courageous work while the cruise ship was moored in Yokohama, and Daniela Trabattoni, a cardiologist from Monzino, the magazine features testimonies from Chiara Gamberale, Cesare Cremonini and Daria Bignardi, and a short story written for Vanity Fair by Eshkol Nevo based on the global situation in the age of Covid-19.