Light and Dark: Muslims in Italy (The Journey and the Meeting of Two Worlds)

Product Description


A mixture of journalism and scientific illustration, Light and Dark wishes to pay tribute to the Italian Muslim community, its traits, colors, people, and contradictions. The book is a recollection of interviews, stories, numbers, and from the author's journey to 15 Italian cities, asking about “everything” that could describe what it means to be Muslim in today's Italy. Heated in nature, queries ranged from racism to violence in the name of God, from identity crisis to women in Islam, from Islamophobia to attempts to Islamise society. What emerges is an indubitably fascinating and kaleidoscopic picture: a combination of joy and sadness, love and hatred, peace and war, hope and disillusionment. And this is exactly the point: we must honor complexity. We cannot make big generalizations. Yet, we must study, question, the challenge in constructive ways – for only through dialogue will we maximize chances for mutual understanding and cohesiveness. 


About the Author


Dr. Michele Groppi is a permanent teaching fellow in "Challenges to the international order" at the Defence Studies Department, King's College London, Defence Academy of the United Kingdom. Former professional volleyball player, Dr. Groppi graduated in international relations from Stanford University, obtained his MA in counter-terrorism and homeland security from IDC Herzliya and his Ph.D. in Defence Studies from King's College London. His area of expertise includes international security, terrorism, counter-terrorism, radicalization, countering violent extremism, and quantitative and qualitative field research. Having had the immense privilege to play, study, and live in several countries, Dr. Groppi's dream is to open a small university in the near future. By bringing together the best minds the world can offer, this university will use innovative tools to analyze and strategize policies addressing tomorrow's major challenges to human security, including climate change, migration, poverty, terrorism, and energy security.