SUN. "FREE" SYMPOSIUM+FILM on ITALIAN IMMIGRATION-YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND TOMORROW

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SYMPOSIUM+FILM ON ITALIAN IMMIGRATION into the US since ITALY became a sovreign Nation approximately 150 years ago in 1861

*** FREE REFRESHMENTS ***

A total of 29 million mostly poor peasants left Italy after unification in 1861 for various world-wide destinations. Today’s Italian Americans are the fourth largest European ethnic group in the United States… And modern day Italy has become a nation of “immigrants”.

This past Dec. ’09 I visited “Il Museo Nazionale dell’Emigrazione Italiana (MEI)” (The National Museum of Italian Emigration) in ROME, Italy. Given my cross-cultural background, it was an extremely moving experience for me seeing narrative films, letters, pictures, books, and mementos on Italian emigration since 1861. I am 1st generation US, emigrating to Italy with my Italian parents at age of 5 and returning to my native Connecticut alone at age of 20, well educated, but with NO knowledge of the English language. Admission to the Museum is Free until 31 Dec. 2011 at the Vittoriano Monument (aka L'Altare della Patria) in ROMA. For details on this unique Museum Click MEI (https://www.museonazionaleemigrazione.it/museo.php?id=2)

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Anthony Galizia
Meetup Organizer/Founder

Friends of Casa Italiana, the Lido Civic Club, and the Abruzzo and Molise Heritage Society present a roundtable on:

ITALIAN IMMIGRATION: YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND TOMORROW
WHEN: SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28 @ 1:PM
WHERE: CASA ITALIANA HALL & CULTURAL CENTER
595 3rd St NW
Washington, DC 20001
(Near Judiciary Square Metro Stop)
Directions: CLICK Location Above
TO RSVP: https://www.meetup.com... (https://www.meetup.com/DCitalian/calendar/12189876/)

SYMPOSIUM MODERATORS: Ennio Caretto, US correspondent for Corriere della Sera and the recent documentary PANE AMARO (Bitter Bread)producers Gianfranco Norelli and Suma Kurien.

L'EMIGRAZIONE PARTE ESSENZIALE DELLA STORIA D'ITALIA

Il Museo Nazionale dell’Emigrazione Italiana, inaugurato a Roma il 23 ottobre 2009 promosso dal Ministero degli Affari Esteri con la collaborazione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali si propone come opportunità di riflessione sulla storia, l’attualità ed il futuro dell’essere e del sentirsi italiani.

Il detto attribuito a Massimo D’Azeglio: « fatta l’Italia, bisogna fare gli Italiani» (now that we have unified Italy, we need to forge the Italians) rimette al centro dell’attenzione la considerazione che l’unificazione dell’Italia non è un fatto circoscritto ad una data storica, ma un lungo e faticoso processo.

Se i Cavour, Mazzini, Garibaldi, il re Vittorio Emanuele II (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Emmanuel_II_of_Italy) hanno “fatto l’Italia”, “a fare gli Italiani” hanno contribuito, in maniera particolare e spesso ignorata, anche i milioni di emigrati che, lasciando il proprio paese durante la sua unificazione politica, hanno portato con sé valori e tradizioni, li hanno messi in relazione (non senza scontri e incomprensioni) con i diversi stili di vita dei paesi di destinazione, hanno creato nuove identità e appartenenze, spesso bi-nazionali. Partiti come veneti, lombardi, napoletani, abruzzesi, pugliesi, calabresi o siciliani si sono scoperti, in emigrazione, soprattutto come “italiani”, capaci di ridisegnare nuovi legami con il paese natio. Senza il riconoscimento del ruolo svolto dall’emigrazione, la storia d’Italia è sicuramente incompleta.

Il sottosegretario Mantica: “aprire questo Museo è stato come dire ai connazionali residenti all’estero: fate parte anche voi dell’Italia, anche se non siete qui fisicamente”

HISTORY

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GIOVANNI da VERRAZZANO
The First European explorer of the USA (1524)

Italian explorers venturing outward in the employ of other nations touched America in its earliest beginnings. The most famous was Christopher Columbus, from Genova. Other Italian seafarers were: John Cabot (Giovanni Caboto), Giovanni da Verrazzano, and Amerigo Vespucci (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amerigo_Vespucci) who sailed in Southern American coastal waters and from whom America was named by the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller in 1507.

The Italian Giovanni da Verrazzano (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_da_Verrazzano)was the first European explorer to arrive in the US sailing past the Carolinas coast and into the New York Harbor. Other Italians played an important role in early U.S. history, such as Filippo Mazzei (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filippo_Mazzei), an important Italian physician, a promoter of liberty, a close friend of Thomas Jefferson, and an arms purchasing agent for Virginia during the US Revolutionary War.

After the American Revolution, a small flow of largely northern-Italian skilled artisans, painters, sculptors came to the new nation, filling economic niches. Following the failure of the early 1800's liberal revolutions a trickle of political refugees joined them, including the famous Giuseppe Garibaldi. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuseppe_Garibaldi)

Most Italian immigrants came between 1880 and 1924 (more than 4.5 million Italians), but more specifically, 1900 and 1914 (over two million). Most Italians came from the Southern regions of Calabria, Campania, Puglia, Basilicata and Sicily. These were from poor rural towns, had little education, and spoke only local dialects. A significant number also came from the Northern regions of Liguria and Veneto.

In a nutshell, an old Italian proverb instructed: “Chi esce dall’Italia riesce” (He who leaves Italy, succeeds).

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Italian families arriving at
Ellis Island, NY in the early 1900’s.

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https://www.everyculture.com/multi/images/gema_02_img0136.jpgItalian immigrant laborers pose with the "first train" construction
through Lebanon Valley, NY (early 1900's).

For further readings see:
ITALIAN AMERICANS (https://www.everyculture.com/multi/Ha-La/Italian-Americans.html)
DIGITAL HISTORY on ITALIAN IMMIGRATION (https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/historyonline/italian_immigration.cfm)

SOME NOTABLE ITALIAN-AMERICANS

Amedeo Giannini, son of immigrants from Genova (BANK of ITALY founder in 1904, San Francisco, CA. renamed BANK of AMERICA in 1928, CEO until retirement in 1945) • Paul Otellini (Intel CEO) • Samuel J. Palmisano (IBM CEO) • Samuel DiPiazza (Pricewaterhouse Cooper CEO) • Patricia Russo (Alcatel-Lucent CEO) • Carly Fiorina (HP ex CEO) • Lee Iacocca (Chrysler ex CEO) • Anthony T. Rossi (founder of Tropicana Juice in 1947, Bradenton, FL.) • Fred DeLuca (founder of Subway Sandwich Shops in 1965, Bridgeport, CT.) • Robert Mondavi (Winery) • Maria Bartiromo (financial Media) • Antonio Meucci (Telephone Inventor) • Nancy Pelosi • Janet Napolitano • Mario Cuomo • Rudy Giuliani • Samuel Alito & Antonin Scalia (US Supreme Court Justices) • John Sirica (Watergate Chief Prosecutor) • Geraldine Ferraro • Fiorello LaGuardia • Madonna • Robert DeNiro • Alan Alda • Ray Romano • John Travolta • Brooke Shields • Francis Ford Coppola • Leonardo DiCaprio • Nicolas Cage • Frank Sinatra • Perry Como • Dean Martin • Jay Leno • Tony Bennett • Jon Bon Jovi (Bongiovi) • Bruce Springsteen • Connie Stevens • Frankie Valli • Faith Hill • Gay Talese • Jack Valenti • Dannie Aiello • William Paca • Al Pacino • Kelly Ripa • Martin Scorsese • Frank Capra • Brian DePalma • Henry Mancini • Joseph Barbera (cartoonist) • Frank Stella • Enrico Fermi • Mark Calcavecchia • Chris Botti • Joe DiMaggio • Joe Montana • Dan Marino • Yogi Berra • Tommy Lasorda • Mario Andretti • Vince Lombardi • Joe Paterno • Brian Boitano • Matt Biondi • Dick Vitale • Mary Lou Retton