Italian American Writers and Editors

Comment

Comment by paul longo on December 30, 2009 at 10:12pm

sorry to tell you this Phyllis, ethnic Italians who ruled Italy up to the Allied Invasion were brushed aside by Anglos of America and Britain and they feverishly tried to put people in the new Italian government who were recruited from extreme left wing parties since they were suppressed by the Fascist government. These were gangsters, anarchists, communists, democrats, clergy, liberals, Nordic looking Northerners, foreigners and a whole host of other groups which, by the opinion of the overwhelming majority of Italians, were happy to see the Fascists remove from power. Since the majority of Italians are ethnic and average age is over 70, you will be hard pressed to find anyone who is not ultra conservative and disgusted with the current state of affairs of Italy and of its government. By Roman standards that are still kept by majority of Italians who, paradoxically, have the least amount of voice in their lot in life, I, who am 100 percent Italian by blood, tracing my roots to the consul of genoa, supreme commander of the venetian republic, and the Roman Emperor Justinian himself, wouldnt be considered Italian since i was born and raised outside of Italy itself. Imagine how these people would consider those who werent all Italian by ancestry! Not to mention that the birth rate in Italy is abyssmal and you can't create Italians by mixing with non -ethnic Italians and, for that matter, people of other races. The rule of thumb regarding ethnicity in Italy has been this over a millenia: White + non-white(including those who have partially caucasian ancestry) = Non White. i recognize the trend of being politically correct would try to buck this equation but doing a reality check proves the equation to be right as it has been for centuries upon centuries. What comes down to it is that most ethnic Italians (as opposed to those considered to be Italian by the victorious allies after WWII) do not consider Italian Americans, Italian Argentinians.. so on so forth...as being Italian and they won't lose sleep about what happens to us here like they have done during the time of overt discrimination by the American government, primarily by Ango and Irish Americans and the disgusting treatment Italian immigrants endured at their hands that caused them to make alliance with people they would consider inferior and normally shun. That is not my opinion, that was the reality of the time.

Comment by Phylis Cancilla Martinelli on December 30, 2009 at 9:20pm

Actually as an Italian American I'm aware that Spain colonized major parts of Italy, including Sicily (where 1/2 my ancestors came from).
However in the "New World" many Europeans had to rethink their identities and alliances.
In Argentina the many Italian immigrants (some of my relatives went there not the U.S. ) changed the language somewhat and contributed to the Tango.
In the South (cigar indistry) the Italians, Spaniards and Cubans mixed. In the Southwest the Protestant owned mining corporations worked to oppress all LATIN groups based on negative stereotypes of that supposed "race."
So In some places Italians and Spaniards put their differences aside and worked with Mexicans to fight for better wages. They forged a Latin alliance with Ital/Spanish their common language.
Which shows that Italian immigrants could be flexible at times and work with what they found despite Old World injustices.

Comment by paul longo on December 30, 2009 at 7:46pm

What most Italian Americans dont realize is that in Italy, Italians are not fond of Spaniards, never had been, never will unless of course if we should forget that they turned on Italy time after time even though expatriot Italian helped to build the Spanish Empire. Their rule was oppressive and the Italians who were subjugated by them made sure the Spanish never forgot the way they were thrown out of Italy. I know of no Sicilian from my parents generation that had anything good to say of Spain or Spaniards. The hatred of them still ran deep.

Comment by Phylis Cancilla Martinelli on December 30, 2009 at 1:39am

Hi, I'm Phylis Cancilla Martinelli my new book is
Undermining Race, Ethnic Identities in Arizona Copper Camps, 1880–1920. University of Arizona Press.
Undermining Race rewrites the history of race, immigration, and labor in the copper industry in Arizona. The book requires a reinterpretation of the way race was formed and figured across place and time. EuroLatins (Italians and Spaniards)—were not considered completely “white” in Arizona .Martinelli looks closely at two “white camps,” Globe and Bisbee, and at the Mexican camp of Clifton-Morenci.

Comment by paul longo on March 24, 2009 at 4:49pm

hi, need to know if there are any experts out there in writing in the Palermitan Sicilian dialect for use in translating a children's book entitled "The Adventures of Silvana and the Magic Unicorn" thanks!

Comment by Christopher J. F. Mannerino on March 20, 2009 at 4:33pm

I, myself, am attending the Catholic Writers Dinner at Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, on April 25, 2009. Presented will be a series of lectures on regionalism and, specifically, the impact of Western Pennsylvania and Catholicism on the local writer. It should all be very interesting since both these fields tend to present major themes in my work (i.e. many of my characters use a peppering of the local Pittsburghese and Italian/American dialects I heard in my childhood).

My current project in fiction concerns the disintegration of an insular Western Pennsylvanian Little Italy (much like the one I grew up in). I am too protective to say much more, but suffice it to say the storyline hosts dysfunctionally functioning families, orphans, living saints, bumbling paramilitaries, priests, witches, and peacocks. Can anyone point me in the right direction for discussion or critiquing groups? I would like to share my story with any interested individuals, and get some feedback.

Also, I may be living in Philadelphia for a year beginning in mid-July. Coming from an area of Pittsburgh in which the Italian/American community has literally evaporated, I am quite excited to be living in a city with still such a markedly Italian/American presence. I would very much like to establish contacts with any Italian/American writers in the area. Grazie.

Comment by LETIZIA C DE ROSA on February 28, 2009 at 9:25am

Dear Fellow IA Writers,
I am thinking of going to NYC for the International PEN festival end of April to early May. Have any of you been to the festival in New York or can give me any advice. Grazie Letizia De Rosa

Comment by GG on February 22, 2009 at 3:42pm

Dear Fellow IA Writers,

Please join me for a free workshop production of my new play, "The Pope Play," directed by Vittorio Capotorto and produced by Theatreworks, a Brooklyn-based production company.

“The Pope Play” is a comedy about Peter Pattelli, a young man who may or may not have had a vision of the recently deceased pope. When he casually mentions this vision to his mother, she informs both his father and the local Monsignor of the Catholic Church. The trio then launch a campaign to have Peter elected the first American Pope, a campaign that takes them on a journey from their family table to a Fellini film to an appearance on Italian television to the Vatican inner sanctum—all in search of a miracle’s meaning and a place in the world and beyond for an Italian American son.

The play will be presented on March 13, 2009 at 7pm, as a workshop. The performance will occur at the Voorhees Theatre, located at New York City College of Technology (City Tech), 186 Jay Street Brooklyn, New York.

Theatreworks
NEW YORK CITY COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY (City Tech)
Entertainment Technology Department
186 Jay Street
Brooklyn, New York, 11201
(between High and Nassau Streets) Metrotech/DUMBO Brooklyn
Transportation: F train to York Street, A train to High Street

Reservations and Information:
For further information call 718-260-5588 during regular business hours.
For recorded information call 718-260-5592
Contact: Susan Brandt; sbrandt@citytech.cuny.edu

Comment by Dianne Hales on February 21, 2009 at 1:30am

I just want to make sure I haven't entered this group under false premises. I'm not Italian-American, but I am a journalist and author and have written a book and created a website and blog on Italian. You can check them out at becomingitalian.com and becomingitalianwordbyword.typepad.com and let me know if I'm eligible to stay in the group. Spero di si! Grazie.

Comment by arlind on February 5, 2009 at 9:36pm

ciao a tutti, sto cercando informazioni sui rapporti tra la comunità italo-canadese e la comunità italiana negli U.S.A .qualcuno saprebbe darmi degli indizi?? si tratta di informazione per una tesi di laurea. un saluto a tutti.

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• Next ›
• Page