Morire sopra la terra [Die above the earth]

The Cold War in Italy has erroneously been considered something that belongs to other lands and borders. The presence of nuclear armament in Italy and the use of the land for storage is one of the proofs of this misconception. To what extent do we want the Cold War legacy to become part of shared memory? The re-appropriation processes of demilitarized places made at national, territorial, and local levels should be looked at, including the unofficial (and sometimes illegal) users of these abandoned spaces, the first who actively re-enter the space and re-gain power leaving traces (such as graffiti art) and layers of meaning. Discussing and making visible architecture and artistic processes around former Cold War military sites can contribute to negotiating the past, present and future needs of using public space which became available for civil uses in recent times and inserting them in the debate around the identification of ways to protect by law buildings of the second half of the XX century.