Cancel Columbus, Cancels All Italians

Oct 06, 2022 428

BY: Andre’ DiMino

Why is Columbus so important to you? That’s a question I get from many, especially this time of year. Well, the answer starts in Brooklyn. My parents legally immigrated to America from Sicily, settling in Brooklyn. Then I was born. At that time, practically everyone in our part of Bensonhurst was from Sicily, so not much English was spoken — I only spoke Sicilian. 

That was fine until I was 6, and we moved to a small town in New Jersey with not many Italian Americans — culture shock! Wanting to fully assimilate, my parents told me not to speak Italian out of the house, which I thought meant something was wrong with being Italian. I later realized it was only their desire for us to fit in and be proud Americans. 

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SOURCE: https://thetablet.org

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