(A tutti voi, un grazie di cuore!)
On June 9th, twenty one Italian American organizations came together to celebrate my four years as Italy’s Consul General in San Francisco. This heartwarming event, held at the San Francisco Italian Athletic Association, was made possible by Alessandro Baccari, San Francisco’s chief North Beach historian, who along with other passionate Italian Americans had the vision and follow-through to make the night unforgettable. We were honored to have the President of the Board of Supervisors of Santa Clara County Dave Cortese, as well as representatives of associations from all over the Bay in attendance. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this special evening!
(Twenty one Italian American organizations enjoy an evening together)
I was asked to deliver a few remarks about the present and future of the Italian communities in the Bay Area, which you will find in the video below. You can also find the full text of the speech below the video. The main points were that the Italian American community finds itself today with solid momentum in the Bay Area, the result of the passionate leadership of many organization in the community that contribute to California and help hold up Italy as a beacon to the world. I also encouraged the community to send more American youth to Italy to experience it firsthand. Moreover, I underlined the importance of continuing to emphasize local youth to learn la bella lingua. And to all the communities in the Bay, I emphasized the great power in numbers that can be achieved if the different organizations continue to unite and work closely together. Enjoy!
To read the full text of the speech, read on below.
REMARKS AT THE FAREWELL EVENT, JUNE 9, 2016
Cari amici,
Dear friends,
Caro Alessandro,
How touched and honored I am of the event you have put together. How proud I am of who you are and what you represent for Italy and for San Francisco.
When Al Baccari told me a few months ago what he was up to I went: Wait a minute, are you nuts? I am sure you had the same reaction. But here you are, you have fallen into Al’s trap and you are still wondering why you had to “spontaneously” write a love letter to the Consul General.
Well, let me first thank Alessandro for his crazy idea and for all he has done in his life to promote Italy and Italian culture at its best in California, and well beyond California. Grazie mille Alessandro, you are fantastic and you deserve a big round of applause!
Let me second thank all of you for being here. There are twenty one Italian associations in this room and a rather large number of people with a passion for Italy. You are beautiful. Look at yourselves. I am not sure if you are aware of the effect you may have on someone observing you from outside. Imagine you were a reporter. You would be struck by the cohesiveness and the buoyancy of the Italian community in the Bay Area. Yes, united we stand! Thank you again for being part of this.
I could use the time of my remarks to list the prodigious blessings that San Francisco has showered us with in the past years. However I would like this event to be not the end of a story, but the beginning of a new one: a new chapter in the glorious history of Italians in California.
I believe that in year 2016 there’s a set of circumstances that make it possible for us all to envisage and build a new golden age for Italians here. The ground is fertile; the stars are in the right alignment. It is only up to us, to each of us, to turn the opportunity into a reality.
Why is that? How can we do that? Let me start with the “why” question.
First, consider this. Never like today have Americans of all ethnicities looked at Italy with such respect, admiration or outright love. Italy is the number one elective foreign country for Americans, and especially for Californians. As Nancy Pelosi put it at the Italian Republic Day, “San Francisco is made of Italians and Italian wanna-be’s.” Was it like this when your great-grandfathers, grandfathers and parents emigrated to the US? I doubt it. This is a relatively new phenomenon.
This passion for Italy happens because, in terms of long historical cycles, Italy is back in the top tier of the most advanced nations in the world. Yes, if you listen to the Italian news or talk to Italians living in Italy you may have a different perception. But, if you look at the big picture you see that Italy is today is back.
When many of your ancestors sailed to the US, Italy was an impoverished, peripheral country, which had gone through centuries of foreign domination. Now you can proudly relate to nation which is about to organize the G7 summit in 2017. Italy is the number two manufacturing power in Europe. Life expectancy in Italy is one of the top five in the planet (83 years). Italy is ranked the second healthiest country in the world. Its health system is rated number three in the world for efficiency by Bloomberg. In Italy health is a right, rather than a service. A substantial part of the International Space Station and some of the best cars, motorbikes and bikes are Italian-built. Italy tops the list of “Best Countries to Study Abroad” according to Millennials. It is the second international destination for U.S. students studying abroad. Italy is number five for gold medals in the history of the Olympic Games. From early 2014, Italy has rescued several hundred thousands of people at sea. Italy is a founding and leading member of some of the most important international organizations committed to peace, democracy, and the rule of law such as the European Union and NATO. It is the country with the highest number of UNESCO world heritage sites in the world: 51. I could go on with this list, but this is enough to get the point across.
Second, Italy is so much appreciated because of the the hard work of Italian Americans. Yes, you have given a lot to this country and shouldn’t be shy about it. You have been ready to assimilate and share generously your talents with your fellow country people. You have injected Italian creativity, work ethic and passion into the very fabric of American life. This is true in many cities of the US, but it is especially so here in the Bay Area.
So now to the question: how can you take advantage of these favorable circumstances? How is a new golden age for Italians in California possible?
The very critical issue here is how to engage the younger generations. Think of how your organizations can be attractive to your children and grand-children. I believe that the more you bring into your activities modern Italy, fashionable Italy, cool Italy – the more you can get the younger generations on board. More specifically, I believe it makes sense to invest money and resources to send your children and grand-children to have a real life experience in Italy, be it work, adventure, tourism or study.
When I was 18, my life changed. I decided to visit my Italian American relatives in Ohio, near the Pennsylvania border. My family supported my plan and paid for the flight ticket. I’ll tell you: Alliance, Ohio, is not Beverly Hills. Yet, the curiosity aroused during those days in the Midwest has never ceased. I have become intrigued in anything American – a total Americanophile! Look where this has taken me: I ended up studying for a master’s degree on the East Coast and finally I have been posted here on the West Coast. Such experiences are transformational. You have to implant the emotional connection with Italy in the hearts of the younger generations by making it possible for them to experience modern Italy directly. Once they are back, they become the natural Ambassadors of Italian lifestyle here: authentic food, glamorous fashion, Italian language. They will be the future leaders of your organizations.
In every case, make sure that your children and grand-children can study la bella lingua, even if they can’t go to Italy. La lingua italiana e’ il veicolo della cultura e dell’identita’. E’ una lingua stupenda, musicale, melodiosa, erudita, invidiata. It’s cool to speak Italian. Incentivize the younger generations to become fluent in it.
Another critical issue is how to be visible, how to make yourself heard in the noise of so many competing groups and issues. In this case, the keyword is: work together with Italians and with Italophiles. Just select a limited number of flagship initiatives, and reach out to fellow Italians and see if synergies are possible. They generally are. We are a nation of many bell towers, molti campanili. We shouldn’t be complacent about them. The world at large does not care about our own protected corners of identity. The world likes Italy as such. In the past years, I have seen an increasing interest in the Italian Heritage Parade, for example. This is such fun event, and so significant for civic life in San Francisco. I believe that if everybody in this room works together the parade can go back to its old magic, with a contemporary restyling and a clear message to the public: San Francisco has its great Chinese parade. But it will have always a beautiful, gigantic Italian parade as well!
And do not forget that Italians with an Italian passport in 2015 democratically elected a Committee of Italians abroad here, the Comites. The newly elected Comites members have an average age of 35. There are researchers and entrepreneurs from Berkeley and Silicon Valley. They would love to engage in new projects with the Italian American associations here. That’s another opportunity to tap into.
A tutti voi, un grazie di cuore e… Viva l’Italia!
