Ragazzi. Migrants and Staff in the Italian Asylum System.

Since the start of the Mediterranean refugee crisis in 2015, large numbers of migrants have been forced into the Italian accoglienza (reception) system, a muddled and ambiguous context describable as a camp. Based on our consultancy practice, we analyze the wide labeling of migrants – no matter their age, migratory journey, or family status – as ragazzi (boys/girls or kids), and what it reveals about the current Italian social imaginary: the effects of neoliberal emotional policies, the continuation of a colonialist mentality, the need for psychological defenses among staff, and the disempowerment of migrants in a camp-like institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]