Mosques and the Second Generation: Pathways of Demarginalization in Bologna, Italy

Abstract

This article is based on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Bologna between 2022 and 2023, including anonymized interviews and participant observation, and examines the role of Islamic religious spaces in fostering civic participation and identity among second-generation Muslims in Italy. Focusing on the experience of the Islamic Community of Bologna—and particularly on the engagement of young Muslims born or raised in the city—the study addresses how mosques, often perceived as marginal or insular, can become spaces of urban integration. The analysis shows that the religiosity expressed by the youth diverges from that of the first generation and serves as a resource for building social capital and legitimising new forms of public citizenship. Particular attention is devoted to the collective experience of the Iftar street, which constitutes a moment of institutional recognition and symbolic co-construction of belonging: no longer “immigrant Muslims,” but “Muslims of Bologna.” In the absence of a national integration model, the article concludes that local dynamics can generate implicit forms of inclusion, enabling new generations to emerge as civic actors capable of redefining the boundaries of urban belonging and articulating a post-ethnic, citizen-oriented Islam.