City Angels

City Angels
Formation7 September 1994
FounderMario Furlan
TypeVolunteer association
HeadquartersMilan, Italy
Area served
Italy and Switzerland
Websitecityangels.it

City Angels is an Italian volunteer association based in Milan. It was founded in 1994 by the journalist and university lecturer Mario Furlan.[1]

History

City Angels was founded on 7 September 1994 in Milan as a secular, multi-ethnic, gay-friendly and anti-racist group of volunteers inspired by the Guardian Angels of New York City, but conceived to combine public safety with humanitarian aid.[2][3] The first team worked with a homeless shelter run by Camillian priest Ettore Boschini near Milano Centrale railway station.[1] After several months of grassroots activity, City Angels were formally inaugurated on 8 February 1995 in the Church of the Carmine, in the Brera district.[1]

In 2007, City Angels opened Casa Silvana, a municipal night shelter named after a murdered homeless woman and inaugurated by then-mayor Letizia Moratti.[1] The municipality later entrusted them with additional hostels; by 2014 they managed three facilities (≈400 beds) and in 2016 opened a 130-bed shelter in Niguarda named “Elio Fiorucci” after the designer who created the group’s logo.[1]

In 2017, City Angels launched the Oasi del clochard (Homeless Oasis), a cluster of prefabricated houses on the site of a former Roma camp; it closed in 2019 when the land lease was not renewed.[4][5] Since 2020 the association has managed accommodation in Monza, Varese and, since 2023, Sondrio.[6][7][8]

During the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy (March–May 2020) volunteers distributed food, medicines, masks and sanitiser to older people, people with disabilities and the homeless in every city where they operate,[1][9] and kept soup kitchens and public showers open in Rome, Bergamo and Monza when other operators closed.[10]

After the outbreak of the war in Ukraine (2022), chapters in Rome, Milan, Bergamo, Voghera, Monza, Parma and Campomarino coordinated the collection and shipment of essential supplies to the conflict zone.[1]

As of 2024, City Angels is present in 20 Italian cities and two Swiss ones.[11]

Volunteers

City Angels are private citizens who assist people in social or economic exclusion (homeless people, substance users, sex workers, migrants, older adults, people with disabilities, crime victims, prisoners and abandoned animals).[2] Many volunteers combine daytime jobs or studies with night-time or weekend patrols.[2]

Their unarmed uniform consists of black trousers and shoes, a red jacket or T-shirt and a blue beret modelled on the UN peacekeepers’ headgear.[1][12][13]

Training

Applicants must pass a psycho-aptitude test and complete a 20-hour course covering first aid, criminal law, psychology, communication and addictions.[11] They also learn Wilding, a self-defence system developed by Furlan.[1]

Emblem

Designer Elio Fiorucci created the logo, which shows an eagle with outstretched wings protecting a city skyline; the image is topped by the words “City Angels” and the motto “Solidarietà e Sicurezza”.[1]

Maroni decree

In early 2009 the Interior Minister Roberto Maroni promoted a “security decree” authorising unarmed citizen patrols. City Angels were often cited as a successful example in cities such as Milan,[14] and several mayors (Rome, Turin) said they preferred cooperating with them rather than creating new patrols. The association did not register under the decree, as Furlan argued that its members are social workers, not security patrols.[14]

Operations

Italy

City Angels are active in Milan, Rome, Turin, Monza, Parma, Brescia, Bergamo, Voghera, Ancona, Sondrio, Novara, Como, Varese, Campomarino, Lecco, Palermo, Genoa, Busto Arsizio, Gallarate and Saronno.[3]

Switzerland

The Swiss chapter has been based in Lugano since 2014[2] and, since 2018, also in Chiasso, where it cooperates with the border police.[15]

Awards and prizes

The City Angels have received several awards in their history by the institutions. Among these the most important are:

  • 1999: "Ambrogino d'Oro", the most important recognition in the City of Milan
  • 2000: Motta Goodness Award
  • 2007: Paul Harris Award of the Rotary Club International to Mario Furlan, founder of City Angels
  • 2008: "Ambrogino d'Oro" (to the honorary City Angel Eddy Gardner)
  • 2008: Ambassador for Peace Award of the World Peace Organisation
  • 2009: The Gift of Humanity Award
  • 2013: Carlo Porta Award
  • 2018: Gold medal of the City of Bergamo
  • 2019: "Bronzi di Riace" award to Mario Furlan, founder of City Angels

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to City Angels.
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Angeli in città. I 30 anni dei "City Angels"". La Difesa del Popolo (in Italian). 28 October 2024. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d "Dieci anni di City Angels Lugano, col sogno di fare di più". laRegione (in Italian). 22 February 2024. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  3. ^ a b "Casting per i City Angels: «Noi non facciamo le ronde»". Il Mattino di Padova (in Italian). 19 March 2009. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  4. ^ "Milan City Angels open homeless "oasis"". ANSA. 22 March 2017. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  5. ^ "City Angels, smantellamento dell'Oasi del Clochard a Ferragosto". Affaritaliani.it (in Italian). 30 July 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  6. ^ "Spazio 37, il nuovo dormitorio per i senzatetto". Il Giorno (in Italian). 13 October 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  7. ^ "Emergenza freddo, i City Angels gestiranno il dormitorio". Malpensa 24 (in Italian). 5 December 2021. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  8. ^ "Nuovi container per i senzatetto di Sondrio". La Provincia di Sondrio (in Italian). 24 April 2023. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  9. ^ "Parte il Piano Freddo: posti letto già esauriti". Il Giorno (in Italian). 9 November 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  10. ^ "I City Angels distribuiscono i pasti delle scuole chiuse ai senzatetto". Ohga (in Italian). 1 April 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  11. ^ a b "Come diventare volontario dei City Angels". Lettera Internazionale (in Italian). 15 January 2024. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  12. ^ "City Angels a Borgo Vittoria, ma non chiamateci ronde". La Stampa (in Italian). 6 March 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  13. ^ "Dormir tranquilli: accompagnare a casa di notte a Milano". Il Post (in Italian). 28 May 2025. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  14. ^ a b "City Angels a Borgo Vittoria, ma non chiamateci ronde". La Stampa (in Italian). 6 March 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  15. ^ "I City Angels anche a Chiasso". RSI (in Italian). 11 November 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
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