What is mutual aid

Mutual aid is a membership-based system governed by the principle of mutual aid and reciprocal benefits, for which what is given to the Company today can be returned tomorrow in case of need.

"THE ALBORI"

The principle of Mutual Aid dates back to antiquity, in the Bible there is talk of laws that provided that every seven years the fruits of the earth were shared with the needy, widows and orphans.

In ancient Rome, associations of the faithful of some particular divinities had already been created, called Sodalicia or Sodalitates, born to provide mutual aid in case of special needs. There were also the so-called Collegia Funeraticia, associations of poor people created for the purpose of taking care of decent funeral honors for their members, paying a fixed periodic fee. Even in the Middle Ages there were brotherhoods established with the aforementioned purpose called "the good death", but there were also "arts and crafts" corporations that provided mutual aid on a wider range.

"YESTERDAY"

These described are the dawn of the relief mortgages, which will have its most prosperous period around the mid-19th century, with workers' associations that were born in various European countries (England, France, Germany), including in Italy. In 1861 with the birth of the Kingdom of Itaia, the Albertine Statute of the Savoy Kingdom was extended to the whole national territory, this statute authorizes free association between workers and categories of trades, usually those most at risk and with greater probability of accidents death. The General Society of Workers of Pinerolo founded in 1848 was the first Mutuo Soccorso society in Italy. The Mutual Aid Societies were therefore founded on values such as mutuality, solidarity and self-management of funds, which were accumulated thanks to the voluntary fees paid by members, and were then reused for members in difficulty and their families. The services provided were various, the main ones were assistance and education and in general the aim was to improve the material conditions of daily life, thanks to credit support, the supply of raw materials or the sale of basic necessities at a price. of cost. Mutual Aid societies were governed by the National Law n.3818 of April 15, 1886, which allowed the growth and development of these societies and consequently also made possible the economic and social growth of various generations.

"TODAY"

In the 1900s these companies remained in the shadows for various reasons (for example, during fascism, associations were not well seen as the state was of a dirigiste and totalitarian type), but they did not disappear by dedicating themselves to the sphere of entertainment, but in recent years they have resumed health care to make up for the shortcomings of the welfare state. Some Mutual Aid societies around the end of the 70s merged into the National Health System.

At this point it is legitimate to ask what is the value of a Mutual Aid Society in today's world and the future prospects for this type of assistance. The deep economic crisis that has hit the whole world in recent years has highlighted all the fragility of an economic and political system that promises a profound divide between social classes.

In this socio-political context, in our opinion, it is important to strengthen forms of solidarity and cooperation that exist as an instrument of support and integration to "traditional" welfare systems.