Italian-Americans, as the hyphenated name implies, represents and is a result of two distinct cultures. We can point with pride to our 15th century brethren who discovered the Americas. Colombo, Vespucci, Caboto, and Verrazano are some of the more known audacious seaman and adventurers that come to mind. Id Est: America was named after Amerigo Vespucci! Who would have believed that many centuries later millions of our ancestors would have ventured out to the Americas to start new lives in a world discovered by their fellow Italians?

Why did our ancestors come, leaving behind il bel paese? Imagine, not to enjoy any longer its wonderful clement climate, not to hear the wonderful lyrical sound of its language or partake of its beauty, culture and cuisine. Worst of all was to say farewell to family and friends and to travel alone to an alien land. For the answer, we must recall the sadder side of the Italian historical experience known as La Miseria.

This phenomenon was a nightmare of injustice and economic hardship fostered upon the poor people of the Mezzogiorno (the South) after unification. The actors of this tragedy are a story to be discussed at another time and place. The upside to this drama, however, was that over 15 million of our people took the journey to the new world and made a successful life by their determination, hard work and talent. Much of the American 20th century was dominated by many of our brethren. Sinatra, DiMaggio, Caruso, LaGuardia, Iacocca are a few notables that come to mind. A complete list would fill a volume.

Why did our ancestors come, leaving behind il bel paese? Imagine, not to enjoy any longer its wonderful clement climate, not to hear the wonderful lyrical sound of its language or partake of its beauty, culture and cuisine. Worst of all was to say farewell to family and friends and to travel alone to an alien land. For the answer, we must recall the sadder side of the Italian historical experience known as La Miseria. This phenomenon was a nightmare of injustice and economic hardship fostered upon the poor people of the Mezzogiorno (the South) after unification. The actors of this tragedy are a story to be discussed at another time and place. The upside to this drama, however, was that over 15 million of our people took the journey to the new world and made a successful life by their determination, hard work and talent. Much of the American 20th century was dominated by many of our brethren. Sinatra, DiMaggio, Caruso, LaGuardia, Iacocca are a few notables that come to mind. A complete list would fill a volume.