“This city is falling apart!”

That’s what newspapers are saying about Rome, Italy. If you lived there, you would probably say the same thing! Rome needs a cleanup—badly. People in Rome trip over huge potholes as they walk down the street. Garbage in the road makes their motor scooters crash. Trees die of diseases. Graffiti covers palazzos (palace-like buildings). When people ride the bus, they almost fall out because the bus doors don’t work. How did the city get so bad?

For a city to function smoothly, many things have to work well—things we see and use every day but almost never think about. Rivers must be kept clean. Streets need repairs. Public transportation like buses and subway systems must be kept in good order. Street signs, fire hydrants, lights under bridges, manholes, and traffic signals all need people to take care of them. Usually, city officials make sure all those things get done. But the officials in charge in Rome have not done a good job keeping the city running. Their city government became corrupt. Officials were willing to act dishonestly in return for money or support. Money should have helped maintain the city. It went into greedy pockets instead. Citizens complained. But the city just got worse and worse. People in other countries started to make fun of Rome: “Look at that place! What a mess!”

Finally, ordinary people got fed up. They decided to change things themselves. Now when you walk through Rome, you see men perched on ladders erasing graffiti. Women and children sweep up litter. People plant trees and fill potholes. No one pays them, but they are finally getting what they want: a city they can be proud of.