By Lauren Goodspeed
It is a warm evening in Cagli – Friday night around 11 p.m. The weekend is finally here and the younger generation is out in full force, the most prominent group being teenage males. They gather in groups around the piazza stringing from city hall past Caffé d’Italia down to Caffé del Corso, the hip area bar. Warm yellow illuminates the cobblestone street outside Caffé del Corso and the faded dark blue jeans and tight black tees of the boys lingering outside. Cigarettes hang casually from their fingertips as they softly mouth the words to the American pop music blaring from the speakers of Caffé del Corso and comment on female passersby. They are the ragazzi.
Photos by Kevin Pauly
As you walk around the streets of Cagli, you can’t help but notice them. Older men warn young girls about dangers of the discoteca where many of the boys hang when the girls show an interest in going out on a Saturday night. Some of these teens have been swept up in a culture of alcohol and drugs, leaving behind memories of childhood before they have even reached 14. However, Cagliese youth have not always been part of this dangerous scene.
Former Pastimes
Enrico Santi, 24, explains that when he was a teenager he spent most of his time in the piazza with friends, cooling off at the river, or playing soccer. He wasn’t thinking about girls or staying out late the way teenage boys do today. In addition to seeing differences in teenagers’ activities, Santi has observed a lack of respect in today’s teens, “We had more respect for older guys. Now this is not true.... For example, when we played al campetto (at the small sports field) and the older guys came to play, we said, ‘[go ahead, you] play’.”
Young people hang out at the Oratorio.
Ovidio Girelli, 75, has been in Cagli since he was 18 and displays genuine concern about the problems many Cagliese teenagers encounter. Girelli explains that when he was younger, he spent most of his time in school or working. By the time he was six, he was doing chores for his parents in the countryside. Growing up, Girelli’s family was poor, so he learned the value of a good work ethic from a young age. He also spent time doing chores at the middle school where he attended school.
Current Problems
While sports have remained popular with teenagers, ragazzi seem to act older and older at younger and younger ages.
Today, Cagliese children as young as 13 or 14 are seen lurking outside bars blowing cigarette smoke out of their lips, or sneaking back into their houses in the wee hours of the night while the rest of their family sleeps soundly. They defy their elders with vulgar language and have even been caught up in the drug scene. Francesca Castroni, 33, is a bartender at Caffé del Corso as well as the mother of a 13-year-old daughter. As the mother of a young girl, she worries about the revealing clothing she sees many teenage girls sporting today, describing the hemlines that seem to be getting increasingly shorter by the season. Many adults in Cagli feel that these teenagers begin engaging in riskier behaviors before it is appropriate for their age.
Some adults view this risky behavior as a problem associated with village life in Cagli. Girelli cites the availability of money as one cause of social problems with teenagers. He believes that Cagliese ragazzi today don’t experience the same financial hardships that he did growing up in the countryside, so they have no interest in working. With so much free time, they tend to develop bad habits. Santi adds that there are few outlets for them in Cagli, which only exacerbates the problem. He explains that kids have nowhere to go and nothing constructive to do, so they start spending time at the bar at a young age.
Teenagers gather on street corner.
While both Girelli and Santi see questionable teenage behavior as a product of life in Cagli, Castroni sees the media as the most major negative influence on teens. She sees programs on television that send the message that with beauty you can become rich and successful, which is misleading and even harmful for young girls. The messages of these programs – which Castroni says come from all cultures – affect the relationships between teenage boys and girls because they overemphasize physical attraction.
A Hopeful Future
Despite the social problems of teenagers, Santi, Girelli, and Castroni are still optimistic about Cagli ragazzi. All
three agree that most teenagers are good kids. Santi points out that even if the teenagers drink, they are not necessarily a menace to society. He thinks that even if the ragazzi get a little crazy sometimes, the majority of the teenagers he knows as brothers – they are nice and fun to be with. Castroni adds that Cagli is a village, so teenagers tend to be relatively good, even if some problems exist. As a mother, she emphasizes the value of good parenting as a way to control teenagers. For example, she doesn’t let her daughter go out at night in order to keep her away from the riskier social scene. Santi adds that the tight-knit community in Cagli helps control some of the problems because if teens behave badly, everyone in town knows who they are. Community members look out for the teenagers and will warn their parents if they have problems.
Girelli is optimistic about the future. He believes the problems teenagers face tend to disappear as they mature, so they are able to lead well-adjusted lives. He helps them by trying to teach them to respect others. He wants ragazzi to learn to be good people so they will succeed in their lives. In reminding them to look towards their futures, Girelli inspires them to take responsibility for their actions and shows them the value of respecting your environment, your elders, and most importantly, yourself.
Web production by Victoria Caswell.
