[:en]Lorenzo Milani and intercultural peace education in Italy[:]

Lorenzo Milani and intercultural peace education in Italy

Agostino Portera

Professore Ordinario - Centro Studi Interculturali - Università degli Studi

Sommario

L’articolo tratta il complesso tema dell’educazione interculturale alla pace, nel tempo delle globalizzazioni, interdipendenze e società multiculturali. Lo stimolo precipuo e la fonte primaria saranno costituiti dal contributo fondante di don Lorenzo Milani. Iniziando con gli impulsi di don Milani nel settore educativo, il testo richiamerà brevemente gli elementi chiave dell’educazione interculturale. Lo scopo ultimo sarà rappresentato dall’accostamento e dalla comparazione di entrambe le teorie e riflessioni. Analizzando da vicino gli elementi interculturali accostandoli alle riflessioni e agli interventi di don Milani, si cercherà di stimolare la promozione di un’educazione interculturale alla pace, fruibile sia sul piano teorico che su quello pratico e operativo.

Parole chiave

Don Milani, scuola di Barbiana, pedagogia multiculturale, pedagogia interculturale, educazione alla pace.

Abstract

The article will highlight the complex issues of peace education in a time of globalization, interdependence and multicultural societies. The source will be constituted by the fundamental contribution of don Lorenzo Milani. Starting with don Milani’s main impulses on education, the paper will also consider the key theoretical reflections on intercultural education. The purpose will be to compare both ideas and analyze intercultural elements in don Milani reflections and intervention, mainly for promoting a concept of intercultural peace education suitable for both theoretical and practical level.

Keywords

Don Milani, Barbian School, multicultural education, intercultural education, peace education.

«La scuola sarà sempre meglio della cacca»[1]

 (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 13)

«Un prete isolato è inutile, è come farsi una sega. 
Non sta bene, non serve a niente e Dio non vuole»[2]

(Fallaci, 1974, p. 182)

«Star sui coglioni a tutti come sono stati i profeti innanzi e dopo Cristo.

Rendersi antipatici, odiosi insopportabili a tutti quelli

che non vogliono aprire gli occhi alla luce» (Gesualdi, 1970, p. 39).

Introduction

On June 26th 1967 died in Florence don Lorenzo Milani. In the large and controversial amount of Italian literature (e.g. Gesualdi, 1970; Fallaci, 1974; Di Napoli, 1974; Bo, 1979; Butturini, 1993; Pecorini, 2001; Fornari & Casanova, 2008; Fiorani, 2010; Sani & Simeone, 2011) the priest Lorenzo Milani has been described as “prete rosso” (red priest) “Profeta disarmato” (unarmed prophet), “Ribelle obbediente” (obiedent rebel), however also “Educatore e politico” (political and educator), “Fondatore di un nuovo modo di intendere la scuola e la pedagogia” (founder of a new way of considering school and education) and “Precursore e modello delle rivolte del 1968” (precursor and model of the 1968 riots). 60 years after his works and operate don Milani’s words are still actual and seem to influence many teachers and educators. Who was don Milani? Why so many books and articles are still published? What is the reason of continuous conferences and seminaries?

First of all, for better knowing him and his ideas, it is necessary to focus shortly on his biography. Lorenzo Carlo Domenico Milani Comparetti was born in Florence in May 1923 into a secularist upper class Florentine family. Milani's paternal grandfather was Domenico Comparetti, a leading nineteenth-century philologist and educationist. Although he had not a religious education, he entered the seminary when he was twenty and he was ordained priest at twenty four: “qui si sta zitti in latino” (here we keep quiet in Latin). He was sent as parish in San Donato, where he started an evening school “popular school” (scuola popolare), open to children from families of all political and religious orientation. This was not approved by the local catholic “conventional thinkers”, who denounced him to the local bishop: “he speaks not about religion” and “he removed the crucifix from school classes”. As a result, in 1954 the ecclesiastical authorities sent him into exile at Barbiana, a small remote village in the mountains, without services, electric lights and water. There he started a new school “dove i poveri imparano la lingua che sola li può rendere uguali” (Where poor peoples learning the Italian language; the only way for being equal) (he spoke 5 languages), which become more and more popular and has been visited by thinkers like Pietro Ingrao, Aldo Capitini, Luigi Einaudi, don Primo Mazzolari.

During this period don Milani felt himself isolated as a priest “come farsi una sega” (like masturbation). His first book on his pastoral experiences, published in 1958, caused a sensation and was withdrawal from circulation by Vatican order (but later it was positively considerated by Pope Johannes XXIII in the Concilio Vaticano II; 1962-65). After the publishing of his article Lettera ai cappellani (Letter to Military Chaplains) in 1965 Milani was put on trial for advocating conscientious objection. Two years later, in 1967, together with his pupils, Milani published Lettera a una professoressa (Letter to a Teacher), denouncing the class-based educational system which perpetrate discrimination and inequalities by advantaged children of the rich over those of the poor. In 1960 he contracted Hodgkin's lymphoma and died in 1967.

Certainly the main contribution of don Milani was his engagement for the poor and the excluded. Through his purpose of giving voice to the poor and let them express their reasons (and not speaking “for” nor “with” them), he aimed to turn those people who lacked education and were likely in danger of being exploited, into “sovereign citizens”. His main idea was that women and man should be able to act according to their conscience, to express and defend their ideas through autonomous reflection and make their voice heard.

 

Don Milani as (obedient) rebel educator

If don Lorenzo Milani is known for his choice to support social excluded and discriminated people by giving them “la parola” (the word; the competence and opportunity of free and critical speech), he considered education as the best way to achieve this purpose. However, his idea was a peculiar kind of education, grounded on democratic participation, cooperation and interaction thanks to the development of all attitudes and intelligences. He believed on the central role of the differences in education: school has to take into consideration and to cope with all forms of diversities and trying to interrupt dissimilarities (economic, cultural), then the worst injustice is “fare parti uguali tra disuguali” (to share equally among unequals) (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 20). His pedagogy was based on individual educational intervention (following interest, motivation and contingent necessities), on the reciprocal teaching (today knows as cooperative learning) through schoolmates example or words.

However, in don Milani approach it is possible to find also many original innovations,. Don Milani idea was a school where elder children teach youngest, where contents are related with reality and the active influence on the society has a central role to play. In San Donato and in Barbiana he started a school for children who had been failed or abandoned by the traditional education system. Artists, farmers, scientists, teachers and professors were invited to presents their ideas and working experiences. Pupils had the opportunity to read and evaluate critically national and international newspapers. The Barbiana school was intended for the farmers’ children and included 12 hour classes every day, seven days per week, 365 day per years. The only exception: Sunday mass. For those who believed that it was too much, he answered “per i giovani 12 ore a scuola a prendere pedate da me sono meglio di 14 ore a guardare pecore” (For youths 12 ours school are better than 14 ours looking after sheep).

For better understanding don Milani’s educational ideas could be interesting to analyze closely his main publications: Pastoral experiences (Esperienze Pastorali, 1958); Letter to Military Chaplains (Lettera ai cappellani militari, L’obbedienza non è più una virtù), Firenze, Libreria editrice Fiorentina, February 1965); and Letter to a Teacher (Lettera a una professoressa, May 1967).

Already in the Esperienze Pastorali (Milani, 1958, p. 239) could be found the pedagogical secret of Barbiana school, where he point out that teachers should not be concerned how to make school, instead how to be for teaching in school.

«Spesso gli amici mi chiedono come faccio a far scuola e come faccio ad averla piena. Insistono perché io scriva per loro un metodo, che io precisi i programmi, le materie, la tecnica didattica. Sbagliano la domanda. Non dovrebbero preoccuparsi di come bisogna fare per fare scuola, ma solo di come bisogna essere per poter fare scuola. Bisogna essere... Non si può spiegare in due parole come bisogna essere, ma finite di leggere tutto questo libro e poi forse capirete come bisogna essere per fare scuola popolare. Bisogna avere idee chiare in fatto di problemi sociali e politici. Non bisogna essere interclassisti, ma schierati. Bisogna ardere dall'ansia di elevare il povero a un livello superiore. Non dico a un livello pari a quello dell'attuale classe dirigente. Ma superiore: più da uomo, più spirituale, più cristiano, più tutto». 

Here it could be found don Milani’s engagement and his completely service to the last. In this book he shows how civil education is more important than the religious one: «quando un giovane operaio o contadino ha raggiunto un sufficiente livello di istruzione civile […] quando sia nato quel minimo di interesse e contemporaneamente sia stato raggiunto quel minimo di livello intellettuale e culturale che occorre per intendere la parola, allora bastano e avanzano dei buoni vangeli domenicali in forma catechistica». So school becomes a place for dialogue better understanding, confrontation. A place where to search for the truth, where nobody has the monopoly. And the impulse for this search doesn’t come from theoretical studies, but from the analysis of the news and the life experience of the pupils (Simeone 2011, p. 189). For don Milani «il male e il bene non sono tutti da una parte; non bisogna credere né ai comunisti né ai preti. Bisogna andare contro corrente» (good and evil are not all in the same part. We shall not believe to the priests nor to the communists. We shall swim against the flow)  (lettera a Meucci; Lancisi, 1980, p. 79).

Another important step is the Letter to Military Chaplains. The letter was motivated by the pupils reaction to a statement of the Catholic military chaplains (by local newspaper La Nazione from February 12, 1965), who called conscientious objection “foreign to the commandments of Christian love” and a type of “cowardice”. In his answer, published by the communist newspaper Rinascita, don Milani quoted the Italian constitution[3], defended the right of Italians to refuse military service and indicated that in war there is only one winner: violence and dead. Following he was charged by court and, as an answer, he wrote Letter to the Judge (Milani, 1965b). Already the title L’obbedienza non è più una virtù (Obedience is no longer a virtue) give us the tenor of don Milani and Barbiana educational thoughts. Particularly significant is the introduction:

«if you have the right to divide the world into Italians and strangers, then I say to you, in this sense, I do not have a country. Instead I claim the right to divide the world into the disinherited and oppressed on one side, the privileged and oppressors on the other. The former are my countrymen, the latter my strangers. […] The arms that you approve are horrible machines for killing, mutilating and destroying, for creating widows and orphans. The only weapons I approve are noble and bloodless: the strike and the ballot» (Milani, 1965b, p. 28; Allen, 2000).

Certainly the main pedagogical concepts could be found in the Lettera a una professoressa (Letter to a Teacher), written by don Milani and eight young students from Barbiana in May 1967 (a year before the 1968 Student movement) and translated in German, Spanish, English, French and Japanese (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967). Supported by a statistical analysis of the Italian education system, it is a Letter against la scuola dei ricchi (the school of the rich), which “boccia” (fails) poor children and brands them as “stupid”. On the contrary, the purpose of the School should be:

• to help everybody to develop their own potentialities and attitude: «Cara Signora, lei di me non ricorderà nemmeno il nome. Ne ha bocciati tanti... Ci respingete nei campi e nelle fabbriche e ci dimenticate». (“Dear Miss, You won't remember me or my name. You have failed so many of us... You fail us right out into the fields and factories and then you forget us”.) (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 9);

• to teach and educate everyone to read, to write and to counts: «Perché è solo la lingua che fa eguali. Eguale è chi sa esprimersi e intende l’espressione altrui» (“it is the language alone that makes men equal. That man is an equal who can express himself and can understeand the words of others.”) (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 96);

• assume teachers that consider their activity as mission and a vocation and not only a job;

• to promote activities strongly related to the real world and students’ life;

• be careful in giving bed marks, since they cause more pain than the whip “La sua penna lascia il segno per un anno. La frusta il giorno dopo non si conosce più» (“That pen leaves its mark all trough the year. The mark of a whip disappears by the next day”) (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 24);

• to promote justice and fairness: «Voi dite di aver bocciato i cretini e gli svogliati. Allora sostenete che Dio fa nascere i cretini e gli svogliati nelle case dei poveri Ma Dio non fa questi dispetti ai poveri. E’ più facile che i dispettosi siate voi» (“You tell us that you fail only the stupid and the lazy. Then you claim that God causes the stupid and the lazy to be born in the houses of the poor”) (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 60).

The acme of don Milani educational idea was that, instead of reject children from poor families, teachers should foster them to make compensatory experiences. Teacher are not paid for note deficits (and to construct etiquettes), but to help to overcome them. So students that seem to be “stupid” or not interested should be given more attention, helps and sustain, also trough more time in the school. Then the Joy of learning can be discovered by every student. The only matter for the teachers is to find the right way to do it. Finally in Barbiana’s school has been used many fruitful methods: the adoption of an understandable language; the autonomous development of the teaching material; the use of the paradox for stimulating more attention; the reference to real histories and situations; the use of group learning; the method that elder students teach the younger; the commune discussion and development of thesis.

 

Don Milani and the intercultural (peace) education

«If you have the right to divide the world into Italians and strangers,

then I say to you, in this sense, I do not have a country.

Instead I claim the right to divide the world into the disinherited and oppressed on one side, the privileged and oppressors on the other»

(Milani, 1965b, p. 28; Allen, 2000)

 

During the 60es and 70es in many of the member states of the Council of Europe the presence of children from immigrant families was a new issue for school and educational institution[4]. In many countries, influenced on previous experience mainly in the USA, were adopted the principles of multicultural education which aimed at the recognition of commonalities and differences and to respect cultural diversities. Teachers and schools were developing multicultural initiatives based on their understanding of ‘problems’ within classrooms. The main focus of this work was on providing second language teaching to immigrant pupils to better absorb them into the existing school structures and education systems.

However, the issue of the relationship between the immigrant students and the others in many schools was not considered an issue. In countries like the Netherlands, France and Britain many of the immigrants were also nationals or citizens of the countries where the families had come to settle after de-colonisation. Teachers in schools however, only saw the acquisition of the second language as a main problem for students and their first languages were perceived as an obstacle. No consideration was given to the connections between first and second language learning, or the teaching of second language and its role in enabling or disabling access to the school curriculum. One consequence of this was the designation of students as being in need of special education and systematically being consigned to special schools. A few generations of students were therefore unable to participate in the fuller life of their new societies after leaving school. In United Nations terms, they were not able to reach their full potential. They were consigned to lesser roles during their working lives and began to be considered as a social problem. These early “problem-centered” multicultural approaches directed to students of immigrant origin led to label them as being disadvantaged and increasingly issues of difference became constructed as deficit. In the 1970s, some countries even saw the creation of new subjects due to the growing numbers of foreign children in schools, such as Ausländerpädagogik (pedagogy for foreigners) or pédagogie d’accueil (pedagogy of reception). In France, were realised separate measures of intervention for foreign children. Over time, however the risks of a ‘compensatory’ and assimilatory pedagogy became visible. It was only in the 1980s that theoretical considerations and practical intervention strategies with respect to intercultural pedagogy slowly began to form This led to deepening of racism against the dominant and majority populations who defined the Others by their ethnicity. In some contexts these measures were being challenged by radical teachers and others by using the rhetoric of anti-racism but not many meaningful policies of substantive educational measures were implemented by education systems. Most of these policies did not lead to the improvement of the life chances of the so-called ethnic groups who in inter-generational terms have complex social class, hybrid and mestizo identities.this concept (grounded on cultural relativism) has been increasingly criticised.

Therefore, the principle of intercultural education and pedagogy, developed in Europe in the 1980s, could be seen as a Copernican revolution. Concepts such as identity and culture are not interpreted any more as static, but as dynamic, in continuous development and changes. Migration, otherness or strangeness is not seen just as a danger or risk in terms of deficit, disease or illness, but instead as a possibility for enrichment and for personal and social growth. The meeting with the other, with an individual of different cultural origin, is considered as a challenge and as a possibility of confrontation and reflection in the realms of values, rules and behavioural standards. Epistemologically, the intercultural principle can find its place between universalism and relativism. At the same time, however, it can subsume both in a new synthesis. In other words, the intercultural principle can incorporate all the positive aspects of transcultural and multicultural education, but at the same time be aware of all the above mentioned dangers. While multiculture refers to phenomena of a descriptive nature and pedagogic strategies refer to living together in a peaceful manner, one beside the other, the prefix inter refers to interaction and describes the relationship, the exchange between two or more persons (Abdallah-Pretceille, 1990). Societies became all pluricultural and can be defined as multicultural; in the sense of the presence of people with different norms, values, religions and ways of thinking. Educational interventions, however, should be intended as intercultural: differences are taken in consideration, understand and respected (multicultural approach), but also similarities and commune elements like human rights are included (transcultural approach). In addition, the intercultural approach gives the opportunity of meeting, encounter, dialog and interaction (Portera, 2006; 2011), a education of being.

In don Milani educational reflections it is easy to find many multicultural and transcultural elements: openness towards other cultures; respect for different social economic and cultural conditions; awareness of how daily actions can contribute to reinforcing violence and injustice; non-cooperation with those forces which bring injustice and violation of rights. These are many very significant items in the legacy which don Milani has left: contents for promoting peace, justice and dignity.

At the same time, many elements strongly related with the core principles of the intercultural education are also evident. First of all, in education don Milani considered all kind of differences as an opportunity of enrichment. He used the methods of struggle and change (e.g. the strike and the ballot) for contrasting injustices. It is also deeply related to intercultural education the fact that every student has to learn to think with his own head, in an autonomous way, (L’obbedienza non è più una virtù), has to take responsibility for his own life, for the others and for the world where he lives. But They have to handle with Justice and fairness, that nobody is better than another and no one should be left beyond. Teachers «non solo dovrebbero preoccuparsi di come bisogna fare per fare scuola, ma solo di come bisogna essere per poter fare scuola» (“should not be concerned how to make school, instead how to be for making school”; Milani, 1958, p. 239).

Barbiana’s school was not confessional, however open for ideological issues, new impulses, and for fear confrontation (Simeone, 2011, p. 189): «Alcuni vivono in grazia di Dio, altri vivono in grazia di Satana […] Di comune hanno poco fuorché un bel progresso che han fatto nel cercare di rispettare la persona dell’avversario, di capire che il male e il bene non sono tutti da una parte» (Same are living in God grace, others in Satana grace… They have very little in commune, apart a development in respect of the person of the other, in understanding that wrong and right are not all in the same side; Milani, 1951). The method used in Barbiana (elder students teaching the younger; group discussion; the use of an understandable language; autonomous development of the teaching material) today is well known as cooperative learning, which represent one of the best way for realize and promoting the intercultural approach (Lamberti, 2010). The role of conflicts is also central in both models. Students shall not avoid conflict, they should learn to recognize it in its entity instead, and to find democratic forms to face it. In addition, the use of the dialogue and of the right words through periodic conferences, reading newspaper and open discussion is deeply intercultural Both, for don Milani and for the intercultural education, an open and constructive form of confrontation is considered as the basis for personal and social growth and enrichment.

One example of the relevance from the high consistency of both (don Milani’s approach and intercultural education) could be found in Letter to the Judge (Milani, 1965b), where don Milani’s idea about the Army became evident: although the armed forces represented just the interest of the upper classes, it is formed mainly by workers and poor farmers. Therefore, noncritical obey is not a virtue. The laws should be observed only if they are fair. If not, it is necessary to start a conflict (dialogue and confrontation) for promoting justice through changes:

«La scuola è diversa dall’aula del tribunale. Per voi magistrati vale solo ciò che è legge stabilita. La scuola invece siede fra il passato e il futuro e deve averli presenti entrambi. E’ l’arte delicata di condurre i ragazzi su un filo di rasoio: da un lato formare in loro il senso della legalità (e in questo somiglia alla vostra funzione), dall’altro la volontà di leggi migliori, cioè il senso politico (e in questo si differenzia dalla vostra funzione) […] Il ragazzo da un lato è nostro inferiore perché deve obbedirci e noi rispondiamo di lui, dall’altro nostro superiore perché decreterà domani leggi migliori delle nostre […] I giovani… dovranno tenere in tale onore le leggi degli uomini da osservarle quando sono giuste. Quando invece vedranno che non sono giuste essi dovranno battersi perché siano cambiate […] Avere il coraggio di dire ai giovani che essi sono tutti sovrani, per cui l’obbedienza non è ormai più una virtù, ma la più subdola delle tentazioni, che non credano di potersene far scudo né davanti agli uomini né davanti a Dio, che bisogna che si sentano ognuno l’unico responsabile di tutto» (Milani, 1965b, pp. 28-29).[5]

On the other hand, some of don Milani ideas on education are dissimilar with the intercultural approach. For instance, to overcame social and cultural differences, he proposed and promoted a “strong classist school” «si accettano forse i ricchi nella nostra distribuzione della minestra?» (do we accept riches in our soup distribution?) (Simeone, 2011, p. 191). This principle is an evident contrast with the intercultural approach that promote contact, dialogue and interaction. In my opinion, although don Milani’s reason that more educated people could dominate by discussion could be shared, it might lead to segregation and can enhance stereotype and prejudice.

Nevertheless, especially innovative has been don Milani’s indication on peace education. According with the main principles of intercultural education, his reflection was not much related to previous theories, like Kant’s perpetual freedom, of living side by side; nor to the idea of absence of conflicts (which is possible only in cemetery); or as diplomatic fictions; not in a relativistic way such as “everything goes”; neither on the aggressive (sadistic) act “mors tua vitae mea”, or the masochistic “mors mea vitae tua” (like yes men). It was based on the possibility of facing conflicts. As better explained in other papers (Portera, 2005; 2006, p. 113), since conflicts and aggressivity are not possible to eliminate from human existence, it is important and necessary to recognize conflicts in their real nature, backgrounds and levels, and to learn to cope with them in an adequate way; also by learning of using aggressivity in a positive and constructive way (like the frenc Asseritivité). Don Milani seems to anticipate many of such reflections.

Final thoughts

«I care è il motto intraducibile dei giovani americani migliori. E’ il contrario esatto del motto fascista Me ne frego»[6] (Milani, 1965b, p. 34).

Don Milani can and should not be confused with authors who fight for abolish schools (like Ivan Illich or the German anti-pedagogy movement around Klaus Schaller, Klaus Mollenhauer or Hansjochen Gamm). He never says that school should be easy, that everybody shall obtain a degree, or that school education should be stopped up. His radical ideas on school and education show much more similarities with Maria Montessori, Danilo Dolci or Célestin Freinet.

Many interesting commune points could be found with the critical pedagogy movement. Don Milani and Paulo Freire (1998) are aware of the human incompleteness and always consider education as: a political act «it is impossible to humanly exist without assuming the right and the duty to opt, to decide, to struggle, to be political» (Freire, 1998, p. 53); a position taking (against neutrality) «No one can be in the world, with the world, and with others and maintain a posture of neutrality» (Freire, 1998, p. 73); a responsible act «It's in the making of decisions that we learning to decide [...] There is no decision that is not followed by effects either expected, half-expected, or not expected at all. Consequences are what make decision-making a responsible process” (Freire, 1998, p. 97). Both underline the necessity for Humans, especially in democracy, to be critical, which means not criticism, and that education is not about transferring knowledge, but rather about constructing it «Otherwise theory becomes simply 'blah, blah, blah,' and practice, pure activism» (Freire, 1998, p. 30). Further, like don Milani, many critical pedagogy authors consider: the responsibility of education in combating the dehumanizing process of global capitalism and new imperialism, e.g. though the recognition of the visible and invisible cages trap of human beings like guinea pigs in the experiments (McLaren 2006); the problems with texting and evaluation in school, which do not address question of injustice (Giroux, 2011); the role of social class, culture (Hooks, 1990; Torres, 2009) and power (Dardar, 2011) between teacher and student.

Don Milani, critical pedagogy and intercultural education authors invite challenges to reflect how educating children while respecting their freedom of thought and conscience; how to guide them, inform them, and instruct them, while cultivating conditions of freedom and responsibility inside and outside the classroom; how society can be better organized to provide for material and social needs of students so that all students, despites social, ethnic, cultural, gender or economic differences, may participate as political agents free from necessity and equal to each other.

’I care’. Taking care was written with great letter on the door of the Barbiana’s school and was central in don Milani educational approach. Taking care include the responsibility for others, the duty to express the right questions and to try to give the right answer. It includes the ability of listening, understanding the situation of others, arise problems and became uncomfortable for others. Then the purpose of school education is that students grow more than the teacher: «la scuola deve tendere tutta nell’attesa di quel giorno glorioso in cui lo scolaro migliore le dice: ‘povera vecchia non ti intendi di nulla’ e la scuola risponde con la rinuncia a conoscere i segreti del suo figliolo, felice soltanto che il suo figliolo sia vivo e ribelle» (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 198).[7]

Became autonomous and Taking care for our self, for the neighbour and for the environment is a crucial educational issue, also in intercultural sense. Don Milani believed on the central role of education and above all education to the differences. School has to take into consideration and to cope with all form of diversities and trying to interrupt dissimilarities (economic, cultural), then the worst injustice is “fare le parti uguali tra disuguali” (to share equally among unequals) (Scuola di Barbiana, 1967, p. 20).

In his last will don Milani wrote to Barbiana students: «Caro Michele, caro Ferruccio, cari ragazzi, non ho debiti verso di voi, ma solo crediti… Traete le conseguenze sia sul piano affettivo che su quello economico»[8] (Gesualdi, 1970, p. 16). But a bit further it was written: «Caro Michele, caro Ferruccio, cari ragazzi, non è vero che non ho debiti verso di voi. Ho voluto più bene a voi che a Dio, ma ho speranza che lui non stia attento a queste sottigliezze e abbia scritto tutto a suo conto. Un abbraccio, vostro Lorenzo»[9] (Gesualdi, 1970, p. 16).

Don Milani is dead, but his provocations, his educational impulses for building better societies are still alive. His words are still extremely actual for contrasting injustices, for promote people with much talent and less resources and for improve intercultural peace education. It remains much material for further development.

 

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Lamberti S. (2010), Apprendimento cooperativo e educazione interculturale, Trento, Erickson.

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McLaren P. (2006), Rage and hope, New York, Peter Lang.

Milani L. (1951), Lettera a Gian Paolo Meucci del 25.06.1951. In M. Lancisi, Dopo la lettera. Don Milani e la contestazione studentesca, Bologna, Cappelli, 1980, p.79.

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[1] «School will always be better than cow shit».

[2] «An isolated priest is useless, like masturbation. It is not good, ineffective and God do not wish it».

[3] «L’Italia ripudia la guerra quale strumento di offesa alla libertà degli altri popoli» (Italian Constitution, art. 11).

[4] For more information about the development and the terminological and semantic explanation of intercultural education, see Portera, 2011.

[5] “A school is different from a courtroom. Only that which is established law counts for you judges. A school, however, stands between the past and the future and has to keep both in mind. It is the delicate art of leading pupils along a razor's edge: on the one hand, developing a sense of respect for the law in them (and in this it is similar to your role), on the other, a desire for better laws i.e. political sensibility (and in this it is different from your role). [...] Young people [...] should hold mankind's laws in such esteem as to observe them when they are fair (that is, when they uphold the weak). When they see that they are not fair (that is, when the laws sanction abuse of power by the strong) they should fight to change them [...] to have the courage to tell the youth that they themselves are all sovereigns - thus obedience is no longer a virtue but the most deceptive of temptations - that they should not believe they can use it as a shield before men or God” (Milani, 1965b, pp. 28-29).

[6] «I CARE. It is the motto of principled young Americans, and difficult to translate in our language. It is the exact opposite of the fascist motto I couldn't give a toss».

[7] “The school must be waiting for that glorious day when its best pupil says “poor old woman, you don’t understand anything and school responds by renouncing to know the secrets of his son, just happy that his son is alive and rebellious”.

[8] “Dear Michele, dear Ferruccio, dear children, I have no debts to you, only credits… draw your own conclusions both emotionally and economically”.

[9] “Dear Michele, dear Ferruccio, dear children, it’s not true that I have no debts to you. I loved you more than God, but I hope He doesn’t take care of all these subtleties” and noted everything to his advantage”.

 

 

 

Autore per la corrispondenza

Agostino Portera
Indirizzo e-mail: agostino.portera@univr.it; centro.interculturale@ateneo.univr.it
Via Vipacco, 7 37129 Verona, Italy

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