Youth Participation, Movement Politics, and Skills: A Study of Youth Activism in Italy

Studies of youth participation in social movement organizations (SMOs) have largely focused on the influence of upbringing on the development of activism. Other analyses have considered how young people use competencies acquired through their involvement in SMOs in their wider political activities in more institutional political settings, as well as in their private lives. While young activists’ paths “toward” and “after” movement politics have been considered within political socialization and civic education studies, there is a need for deeper analyses on young people’s paths “in” SMOs. The chapter intends to contribute to this debate by analyzing the specific skills a young individual is required to have to be recognized as a “promising” activist and progress in the SMOs’ hierarchies. The chapter surveys existing literature and, drawing on data collected through an ethnography conducted on one Italian radical-left SMO, analyzes the importance of hard and character skills in young people’s trajectories within movement politics.