Anarchici italiani in contesto coloniale: Niccolò Converti e "L'Operaio" di Tunisi (1887-1889)

This essay focuses on the spread of anarchism in Tunisia at the end of 19th century, especially within the Italian community, starting from the publication of the newspaper l'Operaio, the first anarchist journal in Tunisia, founded and directed by Niccolò Converti (1855-1939), an Italian doctor, philanthropist, publisher and journalist. Converti arrived in Tunisia in 1887, spending the rest of his life there, animating a political and cultural debate by his journals. Through his biography we can better understand how and why the anarchist discourse was able to spread successfully in Tunisia. Lastly, questioning the so-called “myth of Italianness” – the presumed political and ideological uniformity of the Italian community in Tunisia – from which both the “subversives” and the mass of proletarian and sub-proletarian workers were excluded, we aim to offer a different perspective on the presence of Italians in the French protectorate and their relationships with the Arabs.