Young Italians and the Crisis: Emerging Trends in Activism and Self-organisation

The chapter discusses young Italian’s political activation against the exacerbation of socio-economic and intergenerational inequalities fostered by the 2008 economic crisis and the austerity measures. The study contributes to the book and to the broader scholarship in youth studies and social movement studies by providing an in-depth analysis of young people’s collective reaction to inequalities through self-organisation and mutualism. The chapter is based on qualitative materials (interviews, focus groups and participant observations) collected on five experiences of youth activism in political squats (centri sociali). These materials are analysed in relation to three main research questions: how did the crisis transform activists’ practices of participation? How has this transformation changed the relationships between activists and the surrounding communities? And what about young activists’ relationships with institutions?