Riots - Political, ontological, existential

• Main Author: Andrea Mubi Brighenti
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: professionaldreamers 2009-12-01
• Series: lo Squaderno
• Subjects: Protests and Riots / Proteste e rivolte; lo Squaderno No. 14
• Online Access: http://www.losquaderno.professionaldreamers.net/images/losquaderno/losquaderno14.pdf#page=59

Not only have we seen a number of riots and upheavals in recent years in Europe, but in my view we can expect to see more. Therefore, it is all the more important to understand this type of events better. Riots are a particularly ‘resistant’ topic, in the sense that it is difficult to talk about them not only in a political sense but also, as I would like to show, in an ontological one. Politically speaking, riots are unmistakably described by the establishment – that systematically represses them – as ‘senseless violence’.