Who is afraid of the Black man? Masculinity, race and violence in post-colonial Italy

Alice Dieci

Chapter 8 in Research Handbook on Gender, Violence and Law, 2026, pp 125-142 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter explores the interconnection between masculinity and race in post-colonial Italy. Just like during colonization, with current migration laws and policies, the narrative around Black male bodies continues to be shaped around the stereotypes of physical strength and extraordinary endurance to exploitative working conditions. At the same time, their bodies are also hypersexualized, harking back to the analogy of animal bestiality and the practice of slavery. This chapter examines the way Italian society responds to gender, race and violence and reproduces such violence in an institutionalized manner against non-conforming bodies that disturb a nation's reassuring self-perception of whiteness. In post-colonial Italy, Black bodies continue to be used and abused politically, and it is only by decolonizing gender and race through the rule of law that Italy can heal from its past and transition to a more equal society.

Keywords: Italy; Masculinity; Race; Colonialism; Migration; Hyper-sexualization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035319398
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