The emerging civil society. Governing through leisure activism in Milan

Abstract

The paper discusses the emerging forms of civil society in the NoLo area of Milan that have acquired political relevance by deploying a combination of leisure and activism. The heterogeneous set of initiatives and events that, using the NoLo label, animate the urban space have two distinct traits: firstly, they exert a subtle political action which is played out at a cultural level, in particular in their ability to draw on and influence common sense and taken-for-granted perceptions; and secondly, the chosen initiatives effectively influence local policy-making processes, in line with the neoliberal governance of the city and the authorities' promise to govern not just for the citizens but with them. The case study provides an empirical illustration of an emerging urban civil society, with specific attention on its functioning, how certain situated events were set up and unfolded, and two specific episodes of involvement in local policymaking es. The proposed research findings-including the exclusionary/ inclusive pattern that shapes citizens' involvement, the consensus-building strategy enacted by the studied civil society and the increasing political relevance of bottom-up urban initiatives-illustrate the meaning of governing through leisure activism in Milan.

Leisure, Activism, and the Animation of the Urban Environment

“…Through participant observation during local events, interviews with residents and key stakeholders and analyses of social media, the authors develop two indepth case studies that trace subtle forms of power in neighbourhood events, not as protest, but as part of transforming local policies toward uses of NoLo's public spaces. In echoes of Mair (2002), Citroni and Coppola (2020) consider leisure, activism and the animation of urban environments as vital components in an "emerging civil society" in Milan.…”

Leisure, activism, and the animation of the urban environment

“…In the penultimate paper, a richly detailed and fascinating account of civil society in the 'NoLo' (North of Piazzale Loreto) area of Milan (Italy), Citroni and Coppola (2020) investigate leisure and activism in local public policy-making processes. They focus on a range of arts, leisure and cultural initiatives, originating from grassroots neighbourhood activism, as these initiatives encountered and became part of the neoliberal governance of the city.…”

“…Through participant observation during local events, interviews with residents and key stakeholders and analyses of social media, the authors develop two in-depth case studies that trace subtle forms of power in neighbourhood events, not as protest, but as part of transforming local policies towards uses of NoLo's public spaces. In echoes of Mair (2002), Citroni and Coppola (2020) consider leisure, activism and the animation of urban environments as vital components in an 'emerging civil society' in Milan.…”