The author provides a detailed and committed analysis of the genesis, characteristics and conditions that define the precariat as a product of free trade and globalization. The number and variety of the social figures involved – including the millions of frustrated, educated young people who do not like what their future holds – have in common insecurity, fragmented lives, professional alienation, oppressive labour and unremunerated activities. This condition can be assimilated to that of the denizen, an individual without full citizenship and with few recognized rights. The forms of inequality that afflict the precariat are structural and have nothing to do with merit or idleness. But they can lead to forms of estrangement from politics, and even populist and neofascist tendencies, which is another reason why a responsible policy should tackle the needs and aspirations of those filling their ranks. only subscribers can see the full article