Public debates and historical reconstructions have long been – and still are – dominated in Italy by the self-indulgent myth of the “good Italian”, basically alien – as a national character – to any form of racism.
To counter this pervasive representation with the tools of critical historiographical analysis, the CENTRA provides advanced historical research on national and transnational questions concerning the role of racisms - including antisemitism, colonial racism, antiziganism and Islamophobia - in Italian history (19th - 21th centuries).
Aside from the history of racism – and obviously in connection with it - a core focus of the CENTRA activities deals with the history of antiracism in Italy, by exploring its different ideological and political configurations, its methods and strategies, as well as the processes of its institutionalization.
Although focused on Italy, the Centre aims to build an encompassing framework of interpretation that transcends national boundaries both in terms of research agendas and of scholarly interactions.
Based at the University of Genova, the Centre brings together historians with various methodological approaches and thematic perspectives, ranging from political to cultural history, from history of science to visual cultural studies and art history, from social history to law history.
In collaboration with national and international partners, the CENTRA delivers research projects and fora that provide new insights on racism and anti-racism in Italy for academic, civil society and political communities.