He was a hero to his adopted country of America, being killed in action in World War II, right before the end of the war. Some of you have already read, on more than one occasion, a series of posts about my grandfather’s brother Dominick. There are so many in my own life that should be deemed worthy of a spotlight for what truly makes this country great. If only presidents past and present could embrace the power of the immigrant. In an earlier historical misstep, president Calvin Coolidge stated he thought Italians to be “an inferior race,” notably southern Italians.Īn unfortunate series of events. With the nation at war against the Axis powers - and still reeling from Pearl Harbor - FDR promulgated a directive that branded 600,000 Americans of Italian descent “enemy aliens.” Over 10,000 on the West Coast were forced to relocate, and more than 250 were placed in internment camps in Georgia, Maryland, Montana, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. Roosevelt’s infamous Executive Order 9066. As columnist Rosario Iaconis stated:įebruary 19 marks the anniversary of Franklin D. There’s been a lot of attention paid by the aforementioned news machine concerning the plight of the modern immigrant. However, it’s not just the current administration in the White House that has issue with select groups of immigrants. Men and women with grit, determination, and a love of their adopted country. Calabrian and Sicilian immigrants, to be precise. Not so many years ago, my life was filled with the influence of Italian immigrants. I consider myself one of those people – for good reason. To believe the world may be a wonderful place – as it once was.įor those of us who want to turn back the clock, retreat into a previous time – well, if you’re an aficionado of the news headlines, you could hardly be blamed. It’s not that I don’t want to stay informed – some believe it’s without question your duty as a citizen – but I would prefer to accelerate the aging process with child like wonder and curiosity rather than see my world with a perpetual black cloud over it. I’ve been immersed, in the last couple of years, in what author/podcaster Tim Ferriss coined the Low Information Diet – erasing the influence of national/ local news and other distractions from my life. As a nation, we’ve grown weary of the violence and chaos that often is a front page headline – just recently we can point to Sutherland Springs, massive carnage in Las Vegas, and another terror attack in New York City.
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