I Have Been Working a LONG Time. the Justification of Violence By Italian Police

Italian public pinion has grown more and more aware of police abuses, particularly about those ones committed against young "alternative" youths, women, migrants, political activists. This paper will discuss the case of Federico Aldrovandi, a young man beaten to death by four police officers in 2005. In describing the declarations the policeman made during the trials, I will analyse the Italian police culture through two main theoretical focus: the isolation culture proposed by Robert Reiner and the strategies of denial worked out by Stanley Cohen. I will show how Italian police culture is shaped by these two aspects, which must be set within the specific Italian social and historical background which enhances the authoritarian structure and functions of police, so that any attempt to reform is vain and makes police forces refuse the idea that they are accountable to public opinion. As I will develop my point, I will argue that there exist two models of policing: the Nordic one, which is typical of Northern European and Anglo Saxon countries, and the ethic one, which is typical of Continental Europe and Latin American countries. Whereas the former model is more community oriented, but in the end will follow the classed based and racist input of mainstream public opinion, the latter module relies on a top-bottom structure, which sees citizens as subjects to be governed and directed in the name of superior state ethics. I will conclude by arguing the necessity of creating a new model of policing, focused on diversity, as well as on the equality of citizens.