Does Italy Have a Banlieue Problem?

In Italy, Milan is known for its Chinese ghettos much like in France the cities of Paris and Marseille are known for their Arab ones. Yesterday in a Chinese neighborhood of Milan (Paolo Sarpi), a spontaneous riot broke out after a woman of origine cinese was fined for selling goods during a time that her permit does not allow her to do. After the woman received the fine 300 or so Chinese attacked the Italian police, throwing bottles and flipping over cars.

This outbreak of violence recalls the violence in Paris last week at the Gare du Nord when hundreds of Arab and African immigrants rioted and assaulted police after an officer asked an African immigrant at a turnstile in the train to see his ticket. It turned out that the immigrant did not have a ticket and riots ensued. The Gare du Nord riots immediately became a hot election issue in France (with presidential elections due in less than 2 weeks), and the talk of Paris' run-down, mismanaged banlieues once again surfaced.

In the "Chinatown Riots" -- as Italian media have been calling them -- 14 officers were wounded, and 5 Chinese immigrants (see above). Both sides are still trying to "make sense of the situation" and what happened. Has the rivoluzione rossa, so dearly wanted by Italian studenti finally begun, albeit by the Chinese?