There is a lot of controversy about whether or not our nation should be celebrating Columbus Day. Obviously, we know that Cristoforo Colombo did not discover America in 1492 because there were already people living on the land. The story of the holiday, though, is much more complex and doesn't have as much to do about the Italian explorer who sailed under the Spanish flag. It has much more to do with the history of Italian immigrants in the United States.
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| From NY Public Library -- from 1892. |
Between around 1880 and 1924, more than 4 million Italians, mainly from Southern Italy and Sicily, (my ancestors included) arrived on American shores looking for opportunities unavailable to them in their home country -- like all immigrants coming to America.
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| Photo by Lewis Hine |
Like other immigrants they were not met with open arms. Read the White House Proclamation on Columbus Day from 2022.
"Things have not always been easy; prejudice and violence often stalled the promisee of equal opportunity. In fact, Columbus Day was created in 1892in response to the anti-italian motivated lynching of 11 Italian Americans in New Orleans in 1891. During World War II, Italian Americans were even targeted as enemy aliens. But the hard work, dedication to community, and leadership of Italian Americans in every industry make our country stronger, more prosperous, and more vibrant."
I'll be writing more about Italian immigration in upcoming books. In the meantime I hope that folks will explore the deeper side of this story to understand the hold this holiday has on Italians today and why it is meaningful to look at history. Take some time to celebrate Italian Heritage Month in the days ahead.
