Adnkronos (Adnkronos) – "Milan didn't just demonstrate a revolt. It demonstrated the short-circuiting of a society that multiplies desires, but offers no future, listening, or recognition." As the city prepares for another Saturday of fear, Pietro Bussotti, secretary of Benèpsys – Observatory of Psychological Well-being and Health, offers this reflection in light of the clashes that began in the Lombardy capital.
"Violence," the psychologist begins, "must be condemned unambiguously, but condemnation doesn't mean understanding, and without understanding, prevention becomes difficult. Instead, it is urgent for all of us to learn lessons from what happened." And in the expert's eyes, an apparent contradiction speaks volumes: "Why do very young people, after a protest, end up attacking shops, smashing windows, and stealing designer shoes, sweatshirts, and accessories? The easiest answer" to this "hanging question," dismissed by many with the accusation "'they're just hooligans,' doesn't explain much."
Bussotti's analysis attempts to understand more, to uncover the roots of the "Milan paradox." That of the "broken shop windows" and the "intact desires."
“Hitting a shop,” observes the psychologist, “may seem like a gesture against consumerism, but ransacking it to take its products means accepting it and even desiring the goods (and the symbolic value) that that shop sells.
This isn't about demolishing the system of consumption: it's about asking for its entry. The window display is broken, but what the window represented is preserved intact." Because "a window display doesn't just display goods. It holds out a promise: with this object you will be seen, recognized, accepted. Expensive sneakers, designer clothes, and luxury accessories function as true symbolic passports. They don't just serve to dress, but to say who you are, which group you belong to, and how much you are worth in the eyes of others. Nothing new," recalls Bussotti. "In fact, it brings back the thinking of Thorstein Veblen, who already at the beginning of the twentieth century described conspicuous consumption: you don't consume just to use a good, but to show it off as a sign of wealth and social position. Stolen shoes aren't just shoes, they are visible proof of being someone. Pierre Bourdieu adds a crucial piece: beyond money, there is a symbolic capital, made up of recognition, prestige, and legitimacy. Those who feel excluded from this capital may experience a frustration that concerns not only the price of an object, but the right to exist socially."
“Desire, however, is not born in a vacuum,” the expert emphasizes. “We all,” he reasons, “often desire what others desire. Not so much the object, but the gaze of others. If social media, advertising, and peers present a shoe as a symbol of success, that shoe ends up embodying the desire for recognition. Guy Debord would have called it an effect of the society of the spectacle. Social relationships are mediated by images. And today, the spectacle is no longer just the showcase: it's TikTok, Instagram, the shared story, the viral video. Transgression itself can become content, a stage, and a reward. In consumption, we not only possess objects, but also the meanings others attribute to them. A designer shoe isn't just valuable because it's used for walking: it's valuable because it communicates status, belonging, and success. This is why stealing it doesn't unmask its symbolic power, but rather confirms it. The stolen shoe remains desirable, perhaps even more so, because it has also become a trophy: possession, visibility, recognition.” Here then "the most important distinction emerges. The boy who trashes a shop isn't just looking for a pair of shoes, but what he believes those shoes give him back: identity, belonging, value."
"But the object can't truly fill that void," the psychologist continues. "Once obtained, the need for recognition remains. Visibility replaces recognition. Being filmed, commented on, feared, or followed isn't the same as being recognized as a person with dignity, rights, relationships, and a future. On social media, visibility is immediate, measurable, and addictive. Recognition, on the other hand, requires time, stable relationships, and credible institutions. Axel Honneth has shown how recognition is a fundamental need. Without esteem, belonging, and respect, identity weakens. When this lack accumulates, anger can seek short and destructive ways to make itself seen," warns Bussotti.
The expert quotes the president of Benèpsys: "David Lazzari offers a valuable key. Limits aren't just externally imposed rules, but an internal psychological capacity. They help us regulate impulses, tolerate frustration, evaluate consequences, and respect the rights of others. In adolescence, this capacity is still under development, while peer pressure, collective excitement, and digital media can amplify its fragility. Lazzari speaks of a psycho-developmental gap. We ask young people to self-regulate in an environment that seems organized to constantly challenge them, associating personal value with visibility, possessions, and immediate success. This isn't an excuse for violence," Bussotti emphasizes, "but a condition that makes prevention more urgent. Therefore, we need rules, security, and consequences for those who commit crimes. But if society invests only in controls and punishments, it risks intervening too late. We need to give young people three concrete experiences: being listened to, through adults and institutions capable of addressing their discomfort and the potential, resulting, conflict; feeling part of the community, through roles, and belonging." that don't just go by likes; imagining a future with real prospects for study, work, and participation."
This is why, according to the psychologist, Milan wasn't just a simple revolt. Demonstrations and clashes confront us with the fragility of young people: they smash shop windows, but they take what's inside to assert their existence. But "as long as a person's value seems to depend on what they wear, display, or own," Bussotti concludes, "the broken shop window will remain only the loudest part of a much deeper problem."
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