th
# 84 OCTOBER 17 , 2016
# 84 October 17
th
2016
themselves. So I think that
while we should keep the
name "Columbus Day" we
should subtitle it, "A Salute to Italian Americans,
their history and contributions." That should be the
theme of Columbus Day
parades, and how Columbus Day should be regarded in all 50 States.
nigrating our culture and
presenting us as either
gangsters or uneducated
buffoons. There has never
been a balanced portrayal
of us to the larger American public. In a sense, our
reputation has been defamed much as Columbus's
has!
What is the fate of Columbus Day?
I don't think it will be abolished, but as we have seen,
it has certainly been diminished. Schools choose to
stay open on this federal
holiday; some cities and
states have renamed the
holiday to honor Native
Americans; and controversy continues to swirl
around Columbus as an
important historical figure.
But today, more than 500
years after his first voyage, the holiday named for
Columbus is really a celebration of Italian Americans and their contributions to America. This is a
little-known story ... even
among Italian Americans
And it shouldn't stop with
Columbus Day. Italian
American parents need to
insist that their children learn more about the history
of Italians in America. That
should be discussed at
the dinner table. Books on
Italian Americans should
be in every family's library.
And students of all ages
... from elementary school through college should
be encouraged to research and write on Italian
American topics as much
as possible.
Only through educating
our children and ourselves
can we become ambassadors of our culture to
our neighbors, teachers,
elected officials and the
larger American public.
We are much more than
pizza, meatballs and spaghetti. Much, much more!
38 | WE THE ITALIANS
WE THE ITALIANS | 39
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www.wetheitalians.com