"Our history is ending up in the wastepaper bin: it's an insult to Neapolis and a danger to its citizens," denounced Francesco Emilio Borrelli, a member of Parliament for the Green-Left Alliance, before the shocking images of the archaeological site in Piazza Cavour. Where the 4th-century BC Greek fortifications once stood, a symbol of the city's millennia-old history, chaos now reigns: cardboard, trash, and worn-out mattresses transform the ancient walls into a makeshift dormitory.
The Maria Longo ramp and the remains unearthed in the 1950s, just steps from the municipal offices and the Casanova school, have become an open-air cesspit. "Naples cannot and must not get used to this mess," thunders Borrelli, who calls for immediate cleanup and constant surveillance. "It's not enough to clean up once and then look the other way: we need real valorization that protects these treasures from uncontrolled urbanization and incivility."
The area's degradation is not only an affront to urban decorum, but also a wound to the city's historical identity. The transition from Palepolis to Neapolis, with its nine-meter-high walls, is now plagued by drug addiction, neglect, and abandonment, making daily life unbearable for residents and overshadowing a heritage destined to become a flagship for international tourism. Institutions, Borrelli warns, have a duty to restore dignity to the stones that founded Neapolitan civilization and to ensure safety for its citizens.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
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