Aww, 'cu'mone Jo'weee!
We all know 'dat stuff ain't for real.
Do all Italians act like the Soprano's
by El Kabong 23 Replies latest jw friends
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Yerusalyim
I'm the second generation of my family born in the USA, my grandfather came from Italy. My grand dad from my mom's side was born in Sicily. When these guys came over this whole notion of "mafia" was a bit different, it was tied into the (more specifically Sicilian) mistrust of civil authority and also in the Machismo of latin men. As it increasingly became a more criminal element in the US, and as families became more americanized, Italian Americans pulled away from these types of associations. NOT ALL Italian Immigrants were part of any "mafia family" but clans were close knit groups back then. Almost every Italian american was touched by this at one point or another. When guys like Bonnano, Luciano, Profaci, etc turned these associations into purely criminal enterprises, Most Italian Americans quickly distanced themselves. Having said that, my uncle was a mob associate (never made). They found him years ago in St Louis with a couple of bullets in the back of his head. Sometimes, the mob does follow it's own rules. Seems they had a rule against messing with 12 year old girls. I don't miss my uncle at all, he pretty much got what he deserved both because of the association with the mob, and because of his sexual deviance.
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LB
Hey, doon worry bout it
A friend of mine who is New Jersey born and recently divorced told me her ex husband and all his friends acted like they were role players on the Sopranos. Some of the wives in that group also did the same with the big hair and other trimings.
Myself I don't think all Italians act like the Sopranos. Or that they are all in the mob. I just think they want to be.
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Fe2O3Girl
This is sort of off topic, but I think it is relevant.
The Sopranos is about Americans.
How many generations does it take before a person is no longer Irish, Norwegian, Polish, Italian, whatever, and is American?
Is this unique to people who have descended from immigrantsfrom Europe to America?
Is it acceptable for people of Asian extraction to consider themselves to be that nationality rather than American?
I ask because most people born of immigrants in the UK consider themselves to be British. This does not mean that they forget or disrespect the culture of their parent's original country.
Is this something to do with Brits thinking that 200 miles is a long way, and Americans thinking that 200 years is a long time?
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pr_capone
Well Fe203girl, I am Puerto Rican. I was not born in Puerto Rico but my mother and father were both born in Puerto Rico. Although I was not born there I lived there for 8 years of my life. Because I was not born in P.R. does not mean I am any less Puertorican nor does being Puertorican make me any less American. I am Puertorican. I am American.
I think what a person feels he/she is whether it be Italian, Cuban, Mexican, or Puertorican is more important than any label that society wants to slap on them. A person can be both Puertorican and American without showing any less respect to either country.
Edited by - pr_capone on 2 February 2003 4:38:39
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Utopian_Raindrops
Fe203girl and anyone else, who will listen,
If I moved to say Italy as an Immigrant I would be accepted as an Italian but here in the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA it has not always been so. It is getting better on this subject but still this country has much to over come.
Here are some sites that will explain why Italian Americans keep their Italian Pride although still proud to be Americans as well. Did you know at one time Italian was OUTLAWED In The U.S.A. because it was the enemies language!! Read these sites and you will know why so many Italian Americans do not SPEAK Italian and I feel they should still be considered REAL ITALIANS!
http://italian.about.com/library/weekly/aa102500a.htm
http://italian.about.com/library/weekly/aa102500b.htm?terms=Italian+American+History
When you have read these sites please tell me what you think.
Ciao,
Utopian_Raindrops
Edited by - Utopian_raindrops on 2 February 2003 5:7:5
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Utopian_Raindrops
Here is a sweeter Italian American Story to share also. I found this while looking for recipes this past thanksgiving.
http://www.virtualitalia.com/recipes/momma_pilgrim.shtml
giuseppe, the italian pilgrim by Camille Di Loreto
Being an Italian American means having great Italian American traditions. These rich traditions are so strong sometimes I am not even fully aware of their impact in my life. For example, growing up we celebrated Thanksgiving in a very special fashion. Your could say that we had the typical Thanksgiving food items, however, the traditional meal was expanded to accomodate numerous Italian food items. In addition to the menu expansion, our home would also expand to receive numerous relatives.
Our holiday meal consisted of the usual roast turkey, potatoes and broccoli usually served with garlic and olive oil. In addition to these items were some very Italian favorites such as an antipasto, a lite turkey soup, a pasta dish consisting of ravioli or lasagna, some roasted artichokes, insalata and of course, the desserts. Preparation took days and the meal seemed to be endless.
As a child, I did not realize how different our Thanksgivings' were compared to other children in the neighborhood. On the surface it seemed like we were all celebrating the holiday in the same fashion but what took place in our home was quite different. Typically, most of the kids in the neighborhood celebrated with their grandparents. They ate turkey, potatoes and apple pie. The entire feast took place in about three hours. Our relatives started to arrive the Wednesday just before and stayed until the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Our meal seemed to last an eternity. Everyone helped in the preparation of the meal. Even the men were involved. Their job was to prepare a make-shift table to accommodate the additional family members. This was no small task since the size of the family could double or even triple in size.
As a child I wondered how all this food preparation got tied into this holiday. My father offered this reason for all the fuss. It is a kind of American history lesson with an Italian twist. We celebrated Thanksgiving in this manner because of a little Italian man named Giuseppe.
The Italian Pilgrim
Giuseppe wanted to come to America. There was only one problem... He had no way of getting here so he decided to somehow hide himself on board of one of the great pilgrim ships making the voyage. Even though Guiseppe was a diminutive gentleman he definitely had great aspirations. So off he went aboard the ship. Within days during the voyage the new world he was discovered. He offered the captain with these solutions to his.. uhm.. little problem. He would either swim back to shore or help the cook. Of course, during his offer he also hinted about his fantastic culinary skills. The Captain allowed him to remain on board with the stipulation that he prepare all his Captain's meals.He offered the captain with these solutions to his.. uhm.. little problem. Giuseppe worked diligently with the ships cook to provide the captain and his crew with their everyday meals. As one can imagine, these meals were not terribly exciting but were much better than the usual ship meals prepared by the cook. Giuseppe added his Italian flare and made the day to day meals interesting. Once the ship landed in the new world however Giuseppe believed it was time to show his thankfulness. He really wanted to have a great feast where everyone was invited to celebrate together.
The cook suggested preparing Hardtack etc. Giuseppe having had enough of hardtack protested. He thought that in order to celebrate this momentous occasion a more suitable feast was needed. His menus suggestions ran along the lines of antipasto, cannelloni, braised radicchio, braccioli, insalata and for dessert espresso and lots of sweets. Now the regular chef thought Giuseppe was a bit wacky since he never heard of most of these items and even if he did know of them the chance of finding all of them here in the new world were slim to none.Giuseppe added his Italian flare and made the day to day meals interesting. From the onset, Giusseppe encountered obstacles in trying to locate certain Italian ingredients. Certainly, there was not a place in this new world that sold items such as anise flavoring, artichokes, ravioli or canolis. However this witty Italian pilgrim persevered and accomplished the task of this grand feast.
On the day of this auspicious occasion, the feast was presented to all that arrived. Everyone marveled at the fantastic cuisine and glorious presentation done by Giuseppe. The feast was a great success. So that was how it came to be that Italians in America celebrated Thanksgiving just a little different then some of their neighbors. In any event that is how my family acquired the tradition of celebrating in the manner in which we did. It was all because of an Italian stow-away named Giuseppe.
In case you were wondering... my father's name was Giuseppe. I can only assume he was somehow related to this amazing little fellow! If you have some Italian thanksgiving memories to share, I would love to hear from you.
While you read go here and listen to Nice Italian Music on line
http://italiancarousel.net/archives/
Arrivederci Amici ,
U_R
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SheilaM
Well Thunder Rider my hubby is not in the Mob is Italian (Sicilian) and can cook and well.....
Edited by - SheilaM on 2 February 2003 13:13:25
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SLOAN
Francios,
heehee
SheilaM,
*puts fingers in ears* LALALALALALALALA
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Country Girl
That's an interesting question.
I believe that the true Americans were the ones that were here before anyone: the native tribes. Perhaps they are the only ones that can *really* call themselves American in its purest form.
Maybe the reason that particular Americans identify themselves with one specific nationality, is because America doesn't really *have* it's own ethnicity or culture, but a combination of so many different groups from other countries. We don't have a native tongue, or a common culture and traditions which we all share and can identify in, other than perhaps the fact that we are so diverse. Perhaps identifying one's self with a particular ethnic group helps a person to maintain a sense of personal identity, a tie with the past, in a place where there is a large hodge podge of different languages, cultures and traditions. Maybe kind of like an anchor. <shrug> I dunno.
Country Girl
