In one of my all-time favorite shows, Golden Girls, the character Rose Nylund, played by the late, great Betty White, offers some wisdom to her friend Dorothy (Bea Arthur) as she struggles to enact boundaries with her grown son. She said: “In the animal kingdom, the whole idea is to teach offspring to fend for themselves. Humans are the only ones who think it's their duty to care for children their entire lives.”
Two grown men in Italy were under the impression that they’d receive this lifetime care. But their elderly mother, however, had another idea.
More from CafeMom: Mom Angry With Husband for ‘Not Punishing’ Adult Daughter for Having Sex Under Their Roof
The two men have been living at home without paying any bills.
The mom ended up taking her sons to court to get the grown men, whom she called “parasites,” evicted from her home. A judge in the Tribunal of Pavia actually ruled in her favor, CNN reported.
According to her complaint, the two men had been living in the family apartment without contributing financially, even though both are employed. Court documents stated that they didn’t even help with household chores.
More from CafeMom: I Stopped Paying for My Daughter's Phone & Internet After She Badmouthed Me on TikTok
The judge ruled the men should vacate their mother's home.
Judge Simona Caterbi ruled in favor of the mother, whose entire pension was spent on groceries for the three adults and the maintenance of the home. The mother, 75, is separated from her sons’ father.
The judge decided that the two men, called “bamboccioni,” or big babies, would have to vacate the home on December 18.
Caterbi wrote, “There is no provision in the legislation which attributes to the adult child the unconditional right to remain in the home exclusively owned by the parents, against their will and by virtue of the family bond alone.”
In Italian culture, children live with their parents into their 30s.
The sons hired lawyers to fight the eviction. They argue that Italian parents are required, by law, to the care of their children for as long as necessary.
Caterbi mentioned there is an existing law which states that “the stay in the property could initially be considered well founded because the law is based on the maintenance obligation incumbent on the parent.”
But she ruled that it’s no longer justifiable for the two defendants, older than 40, to expect their parents to continue the maintenance obligation beyond limits that are no longer reasonable.
This is not the first time a judge has had to order a grown man out of his parents' home.
The two men have not decided if they will appeal the eviction. As strange as this case may sound to Americans, this is not the first time a case of this manner has made its way to the courts.
In Italy, it is culturally acceptable for children in their 30s to continue living with their parents, the New York Post reported.
In 2020, Italy’s Supreme Court ruled against a 35-year-old man and part-time musician who still expected his parents to financially support him because he could not support himself on his salary of 20,000 euros per year, which is about $21,000 US, CNN noted.
