City Angels
An Italian volunteer association combining humanitarian assistance, social support, and unarmed community patrols.
Last updated November 4, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
City Angels is an Italian volunteer association founded in Milan in 1994 by journalist and university lecturer Mario Furlan. The organization was created as a secular, multi-ethnic, gay-friendly, and anti-racist movement inspired in part by the Guardian Angels of New York, but with a broader mission than public-order patrols. Its work combines practical assistance for people experiencing homelessness and social exclusion with a visible, non-armed presence in urban areas. The association describes its role primarily in social and humanitarian terms rather than as a private security service. The first City Angels team worked with a shelter for homeless people operated by the Camillian priest Ettore Boschini near Milano Centrale railway station. After several months of informal activity, the group was formally inaugurated on 8 February 1995 at the Church of the Carmine in Milan’s Brera district. Its volunteers have since assisted people facing homelessness, poverty, addiction, migration-related hardship, disability, old age, victimization, imprisonment, and other forms of exclusion. They also help abandoned animals and interact with people working in the sex trade. Volunteers commonly combine City Angels duties with employment or study, undertaking evening, night, or weekend patrols and support shifts. The association’s recognizable uniform consists of black trousers and shoes, a red jacket or shirt, and a blue beret modeled on the headgear associated with United Nations peacekeepers. Volunteers are unarmed. Applicants undergo a psycho-aptitude assessment and a 20-hour training course covering first aid, criminal law, psychology, communication, and addiction-related issues. Training also includes Wilding, a self-defense system developed by Furlan. The organization’s emblem was designed by fashion designer Elio Fiorucci and depicts an eagle protecting a city skyline, together with the name City Angels and the motto “Solidarietà e Sicurezza,” or “Solidarity and Security.” A major part of City Angels’ work has involved accommodation and basic services for homeless people. In 2007, it opened Casa Silvana, a municipal night shelter named after a homeless woman who had been murdered. The facility was inaugurated by Milan mayor Letizia Moratti. The municipality later entrusted the association with additional shelters; by 2014, City Angels managed three facilities with approximately 400 beds. In 2016, it opened a 130-bed shelter in Milan’s Niguarda district, named Elio Fiorucci in recognition of the designer who created the organization’s logo. In 2017, the association launched the Oasi del clochard, a group of prefabricated homes established on the site of a former Roma camp. The project ended in 2019 after the land lease was not renewed. Since 2020, the organization has also managed accommodation in Monza and Varese, and since 2023 in Sondrio. City Angels expanded its local chapters across Italy and established a Swiss presence in Lugano in 2014, adding activity in Chiasso in 2018 in cooperation with border police. By 2024, it reported operations in 20 Italian cities and two Swiss cities. Its Italian locations include Milan, Rome, Turin, Monza, Parma, Brescia, Bergamo, Voghera, Ancona, Sondrio, Novara, Como, Varese, Campomarino, Lecco, Palermo, Genoa, Busto Arsizio, Gallarate, and Saronno. The organization also mobilizes during emergencies. During the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, from March to May 2020, volunteers distributed food, medicines, masks, and sanitizer to older people, people with disabilities, and homeless people. In Rome, Bergamo, and Monza, City Angels kept soup kitchens and public showers operating when other providers closed. After Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, chapters in Rome, Milan, Bergamo, Voghera, Monza, Parma, and Campomarino organized collections and shipments of essential supplies to the war-affected region. The group has received civic and humanitarian recognition, including Milan’s Ambrogino d’Oro, the Motta Goodness Award, the Rotary International Paul Harris Award for Mario Furlan, the Ambassador for Peace Award, the Carlo Porta Award, the Gold Medal of the City of Bergamo, and other honors.
History
City Angels was established in Milan on 7 September 1994 by Mario Furlan, a journalist and university lecturer. Furlan drew inspiration from the Guardian Angels movement in New York but developed an organization with a distinct Italian emphasis on humanitarian support and social inclusion. From the outset, City Angels was conceived as secular, multi-ethnic, gay-friendly, and anti-racist. The first volunteers supported a homeless shelter run by Camillian priest Ettore Boschini near Milano Centrale railway station. The association was formally inaugurated on 8 February 1995 at the Church of the Carmine in the Brera district. The group’s model combines street-level assistance with an unarmed and highly visible presence in public spaces. Volunteers assist homeless people, people affected by addiction, migrants, older adults, people with disabilities, crime victims, prisoners, sex workers, and abandoned animals. Although their patrols may contribute to a sense of public safety, City Angels has resisted being defined as a private security organization. During the debate around Italy’s 2009 security decree, which authorized certain forms of unarmed citizen patrol, the association did not register under the decree. Furlan argued that City Angels volunteers were social workers and humanitarian responders rather than security patrols. Accommodation became an increasingly important part of the organization’s work. In 2007, City Angels opened Casa Silvana, a municipal night shelter in Milan named after a homeless woman who had been murdered. The shelter was inaugurated by then-mayor Letizia Moratti. Milan later assigned additional facilities to the organization, and by 2014 City Angels was managing three shelters with roughly 400 beds. In 2016, it opened another 130-bed facility in Niguarda, named Elio Fiorucci after the fashion designer responsible for the group’s logo. In 2017, City Angels created the Oasi del clochard, a settlement of prefabricated houses on a former Roma-camp site. It ceased operating in 2019 when the lease for the land was not renewed. The association broadened its accommodation operations beyond Milan. Since 2020 it has managed facilities in Monza and Varese, and since 2023 it has operated accommodation in Sondrio. Its volunteer network also expanded nationally, with chapters in cities including Rome, Turin, Parma, Brescia, Bergamo, Voghera, Ancona, Novara, Como, Campomarino, Lecco, Palermo, Genoa, Busto Arsizio, Gallarate, and Saronno. Internationally, a Swiss chapter was established in Lugano in 2014, followed by activity in Chiasso from 2018, where it cooperates with border police. By 2024, the organization was present in 20 Italian cities and two Swiss cities. City Angels requires applicants to complete a psycho-aptitude test and a 20-hour training program. The curriculum includes first aid, criminal law, psychology, communication, and addiction studies. Volunteers also learn Wilding, a self-defense discipline developed by Furlan. Their standard uniform—black trousers and shoes, a red shirt or jacket, and a blue beret—makes teams readily identifiable while reinforcing the organization’s peacekeeping-inspired public image. The logo, designed by Elio Fiorucci, shows an eagle with extended wings protecting an urban skyline and carries the motto “Solidarietà e Sicurezza.” The organization has repeatedly adapted its operations to urgent social conditions. During the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, volunteers distributed food, medication, masks, and sanitizer to vulnerable residents and homeless people. In Rome, Bergamo, and Monza, they kept soup kitchens and public showers open when other operators suspended services. Following the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, chapters in several Italian cities organized the collection and shipment of essential goods. These activities complemented the association’s routine work of street outreach, shelter management, and support for people facing exclusion. City Angels has received civic and humanitarian recognition over time. Awards associated with the organization and its founder include Milan’s Ambrogino d’Oro, the Motta Goodness Award, a Rotary International Paul Harris Award, the Ambassador for Peace Award, the Carlo Porta Award, the Gold Medal of the City of Bergamo, the Bronzi di Riace award, and the Cavaliere al merito honor awarded to Mario Furlan in 2024.
- 2024
Network reaches 20 Italian cities and two Swiss cities
[1]The association reported a presence across 20 Italian cities and two Swiss cities.
- 2023
Accommodation operations expand to Sondrio
[1]City Angels began managing accommodation in Sondrio.
- 2022
Ukraine humanitarian collections
[1]Italian chapters coordinated donations and shipments of essential supplies after the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.
- 2020
Pandemic relief operations
[1]Volunteers provided essential goods and maintained selected public services during the first COVID-19 emergency.
- 2019
Oasi del clochard closes
[1]The housing project ended after its land lease was not renewed.
- 2017
Oasi del clochard launched
[1]City Angels created a cluster of prefabricated homes for homeless people.
- 2016
Elio Fiorucci shelter opens
[1]The association opened a 130-bed shelter in Milan’s Niguarda district.
- 2014
Swiss expansion to Lugano
[1]A Swiss chapter was established in Lugano.
- 2007
Casa Silvana opens
[1]City Angels opened a municipal night shelter for homeless people in Milan.
- 1995
Formal inauguration
[1]The organization was formally inaugurated on 8 February at the Church of the Carmine in Milan’s Brera district.
Products and positioning
A civic volunteer organization positioned between humanitarian aid, homelessness services, and community-based urban support. City Angels emphasizes solidarity, inclusion, practical assistance, and a non-armed public presence rather than commercial security services.
Social support · 1994
Homeless outreach
Volunteers provide direct assistance to people living without stable housing, including outreach, practical support, referrals, and help accessing food, shelter, hygiene services, and other forms of aid.
Housing support · 2007
Shelter and accommodation management
City Angels operates or has operated shelters and accommodation facilities for homeless people, including Casa Silvana, the Elio Fiorucci facility in Niguarda, and later facilities in Monza, Varese, and Sondrio.
Community assistance · 1994
Community patrols
Uniformed, unarmed volunteers patrol urban areas, offering assistance and helping people in vulnerable situations. The organization presents this activity as social work and humanitarian support rather than private security.
Training · 1994
Volunteer training
Applicants complete a psycho-aptitude assessment and a 20-hour course covering first aid, criminal law, psychology, communication, and addictions, together with Wilding self-defense training.
Marketing campaigns
- 2022Ukraine humanitarian aid drive
Italy · Ukraine
City Angels chapters in Rome, Milan, Bergamo, Voghera, Monza, Parma, and Campomarino collected essential goods and coordinated their shipment to support people affected by the war in Ukraine.
Outcome. The participating chapters created a coordinated cross-city humanitarian response.
- 2020COVID-19 emergency relief
Italy
During the first pandemic emergency, City Angels volunteers delivered food, medicine, masks, and sanitizer to older people, people with disabilities, and homeless people. They also kept soup kitchens and public showers open in Rome, Bergamo, and Monza.
Outcome. The association continued essential support services in several cities while other operators were closed or inactive.
Brand decisions
2009
Declined registration under the citizen-patrol security decreeStrategyBackground
Italy’s 2009 security decree authorized certain forms of unarmed citizen patrols, and City Angels was cited as an example of an existing volunteer organization involved in urban safety.
Action taken
City Angels did not register under the decree because its founder characterized the volunteers as social workers and humanitarian aides rather than security patrols.
Aftermath
The decision reinforced the association’s distinction between social assistance and private or quasi-official policing.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/city-angels · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled