If I were to ask you to name a great guitarist, who would you name? If you are from my generation, you might say Clapton or Hendrix. If you are old school, you might go with B.B. King or Les Paul. If, however, you are really old school, and I am talking 18th century old … Continue reading Who is your Favorite Guitarist?
Aunt Jemima, Uncle Ben, & Chef Boyardee
Aunt Jemima, Uncle Ben, & Chef Boyardee; one of these things is not like the other. In the wake of the world becoming more aware of the damage caused by racial stereotypes, many of the icons with which we have become accustomed are being replaced. Land o’ Lakes recently removed the native American from … Continue reading Aunt Jemima, Uncle Ben, & Chef Boyardee
The Italian Immigrant Myth
If you are Italian American, you have probably seen the meme of Italian immigrant children circa 1900 in homespun clothes waving American flags. The image is captioned; Legal Italian Immigrants did not wave Italian flags coming into America, they did not riot and try to stop the legal election process. They learned English, they were … Continue reading The Italian Immigrant Myth
Are Italian-Americans Italian?
Are Italian-Americans Italian? People keep telling me we aren’t. When I say I am Italian, Italian-Italians, those born in Italy, look at me with suspicion and scoff. American Uber-patriots chide me, telling me that I am American. In their minds, to associate myself the culture of my forbears is close to treason. With so many … Continue reading Are Italian-Americans Italian?
Invading Marsala
Today we invaded Marsala, traveling in the footsteps of Garibaldi. As I wrote about in my book, Italianità: The Essence of Being Italian and Italian-American, Garibaldi is the Italian version of Washington. Just like Washington, Garibaldi led a group of volunteers to victory over the professional army of one of the world powers at that … Continue reading Invading Marsala
