The Battle of Milan: Social Representations of The April 12th Riots by two Italian Chinese communities

The chapter investigates the social representations enacted by two groups of Chinese migrants (residing in Milan and Prato) of the April 12, 2007 riots which pitted Milanese Chinese migrants and Milan City police in the area known as the "Milanese Chinatown". Accounts were gathered through on-site ethnography and interviews to a sample of migrants, both involved and uninvolved in the incident. The analysis show a coherent representation of the incident as a necessary move by the migrants vis-à-vis a sudden change enacted by the municipality in the regulations of the area