Living an activist life: youth political activism between structural constraints, individualization and existential choices

Abstract This article explores the individualization of political activism not so much as a limitation on collective action as a transformation of the way in which an activist life is led. On the basis of research carried out in Milan, among young activists in mainly left-wing squats, the article analyses, on the one hand, the tensions currently existing between processes of individualization and the need for cooperation, and, on the other, the consolidation of a paradigm of activism centered on personal identity and lifestyle. After discussing individualization and self-entrepreneurship as generational experiences which permeate even the most established forms of left-wing activism, the article addresses this issue by drawing on in-depth biographical interviews conducted with young people embedded in the political activism in Milan.