Grassroots mobilizations against corruption in Italy

In recent decades, corruption has become an important issue around the world, from an institutional, political, social and academic point of view (della Porta - Vannucci, 2021). The attention generated towards the analysis of the corruption dynamics has had alternating phases, often responding to an emergency logic, also due to some events and scandals (Vannucci, 2012). An important element in the fight against corruption is the activation of civil society through grassroots mobilizations (della Porta - Mattoni, 2021). The study of these mobilizations is part of a broader analytical framework, the so-called social movements, which focuses on the involvement of citizens in collective action (della Porta - Diani, 2020). The period characterized by the beginning of Mani Pulite / Tangentopoli (1992) favored a season of national mobilization by citizens, which involved the entire country (Barbacetto-Travaglio-Gomez, 2002). This contribution intends to focus on the period between 1992 and 2021, to explore how social movements against corruption have changed in these thirty years in Italy. The results are part of an ongoing research: the main sources used are press reviews and in-depth interviews (Protest Event Analyzes, Hutter 2014). The goal is to draw a map of the main initiatives activated in Italy and reported by the newspapers. This exploratory analysis aims to outline some changes concerning actors, repertoires, frames and structure of political opportunities in the period selected and to focus attention on future lines of investigation on the struggle of civil society against corruption.