We... “the People” o “the 99%”? Sul concetto di popolo: il popolo, un altro popolo, quale popolo?

Although populism and other contemporary -isms have now entered everyday language, still many shadow areas make it difficult to identify a fully comprehensive definition. This article aims to offer some useful theoretical elements for a rational analysis of the so-called new populism. Firstly, Giovanni Magrì’s recent proposal of the concepts of people and nation will be briefly summarized. This elaboration allows the inherent ambiguity that characterizes the term ‘people’ to emerge, also implied in the dichotomy “political/exclusion – right/inclusion” suggested by Sergio Cotta. Thus, the choice to juxtapose the expressions “We, the People” with “We the 99%” aims to symbolically synthesize the proposed reasoning. Finally, by reflecting on the meaning of “people” as used by neo-populisms, the third and significant image of “Me, the People” was then introduced.