Qu'est-ce qu'on fait maintenant? Cosa facciamo ora? What shall we do now?¿Qué hacemos ahora?
If you watch the videos of the latest protest demonstrations (2026) in Madrid, Paris, Milan and Beograd you immediately perceive the common ground of such protests: they are coming from younger generations usually aged between 15 and 25 years old.
This is encouraging for them and for all of us.
Protesters are putting forward the biggest issue for all of us, namely the FUTURE. In this respect younger protesters are the main stakeholders since, in principle, they should be entitled to the largest stake of “our” future.
Although a violent approach cannot be shared nor justified. The issue, nevertheless, remains and it does not seem to have been tackled in Europe during the last couple of decades.
One is surprised by the surprise of policy and decision makers.
Surprise, surprise…
Younger generations are not happy to have no access to top education (sometimes even just education), being able to plan their future by being put in the condition to access to a reasonable long-term job which allows to earn their living and rent a place, live a normal life with your friends and beloved ones.
In big cities such as Milan outskirts and “social periphery” — in our view — is not a geographical concept it is now a well-defined economic, societal and cultural space.
The opening up of our cities to people coming from different countries, religions and cultures is the plain consequence of the increased globalization and exchanges — that the world has been experimenting in the last 50 years — and the communication and telecommunication revolution undergone by each of us in the technological tools at our use.
Multicultural societies are not new in human history as much as the related societal challenges. Contamination can be positive or negative depending on the outcome.
In this respect for example in Milan the concept of baby-gangs is relatively new. It developed in the last 15 years.
As with all cities, historically, Milan knew different geographical areas under the “influence” of different criminal groups (with an average age much older than those of existing baby-gangs).
What seems to be new is the rage that baby-gangs wish to manifest against people, for example, entering in “their” zona (the relevant areas in which the city of Milan has been divided up for administrative purposes — in Paris one may think of arrondissements).
The underlying claim, each time, seems to be the following: “I am not entitled to be part of the city (in the sense of being actively involved in the decision making process and “eligible” for access to the opportunities offered), therefore in this little portion of the territory of the city (i.e. the ZONA in which I live — “my territory” ) you are submitted to “our rules”: the rules imposed by our gang”.
Undoubtedly this is a violent approach which eventually results in transforming the ZONA (the relevant block-territory) in a ghetto further isolating the social context of that area from the rest of the city.
Everybody tells us how wonderful and full of energy are the outskirts of big cities. This is true. The point, though, is to try to convey such energies towards positive goals and constructive projects. Easier said than done….
Any concrete idea?
One may wonder whether in the idea and act of fencing their ZONA around from the rest of the city there might be a positive feeling: e.g. “sense of belonging to a community, a small portion of the territory”.
A sort of sense of identification with the area where you live rather than the whole city of Milan. As a matter of fact all cities have been undergoing a dramatic process of gentrification which prevents lower-income families from aspiring to live in gentrified areas of the cities. Either you manage to live in your ghetto for the rest of your life or you leave the city.
This negative situation could lead to a sense of belonging to your zona. Baby-gangs in Milan, for example identify them selves out of the number of their zona (e.g CZ8 if you belong to “ZONA 8”).
Would it be possible to transform such sense of belonging — which stems from a lack of concrete perspective/opportunities to create your own future (or at least the opportunity to try to…) — into a constructive value for the future of the younger generations grouping themselves into territorial baby-gangs?
Of course there are no easy or magic recipe/solutions but we think that sense of belonging identified by the number of the zona can become a venture to deploy and convey their energies into a value-creation project able to remunerate the baby-gangs members as an outcome of the common undertaking and the work carried out together.
Maybe this can trigger your journey towards economic independence, societal interaction and actively try to pursue your aspirations. This is what we call the first mile.
[to be continued]
Written by Riccardo Aimerito
Comments