“In cammino per un mondo nuovo”. La marcia Perugia-Assisi e il nuovo (dis)ordine internazionale (1990-1999)

The article analyzes the Peace Marches from Perugia to Assisi held in the 1990s. First organized in 1961, by the 1990s the Perugia-Assisi March became a well established event taking place at least every second year. It served as a catalyst for the varied archipelago of organizations and activists engaged in peace issues in Italy at the time. Therefore, it provides an excellent lens through which to explore Italian peace activism after the end of the Cold War. Indeed, the analysis of the Perugia-Assisi Marches through the 1990s provides the opportunity to highlight a set of new problems and challenges confronting activists. The paper explores the search for a “modern pacifism”, that is, a new approach to peace in the post-1989 world; the growing importance attached to civil society in order to preserve peace in a rapidly globalizing world; and, finally, the complex and yet important role played by political parties in mobilizations for peace in Italy, during a phase of difficult political transition for the country.