#ItalianAmericans #Discrimination #Equality #SocialJustice
Italian Americans used to face a lot of discrimination in America, but over the years, the situation has significantly improved. So, why aren’t Italians discriminated against in America anymore? Let’s dive into the factors that have led to this positive transformation and explore whether this change can be applied to other marginalized groups as well.
## Historical Context: From Discrimination to Acceptance
In the early 20th century, Italian immigrants faced widespread prejudice and discrimination in America. They were stereotyped as “Mafia” members or uneducated laborers, subjected to xenophobic remarks, and often marginalized in society. However, as time passed and Italian Americans integrated into American culture, these stereotypes began to dissipate.
### Immigration Waves: Assimilation and Integration
Italian immigrants arrived in the United States in waves, with each generation adapting to American customs and values while maintaining their cultural heritage. The assimilation of Italian Americans into mainstream society played a crucial role in reducing discrimination and fostering acceptance.
– **Cultural Contributions**: Italian Americans enriched American society with their culinary traditions, art, music, and craftsmanship, earning respect and appreciation from their fellow citizens.
– **Education and Professional Success**: Second and third-generation Italian Americans excelled in various fields, including business, politics, and the arts, challenging stereotypes and proving their worth.
## Social Progress: Rise of Inclusivity and Diversity
In recent decades, America has made significant strides in promoting inclusivity and diversity, which have positively impacted Italian Americans and other minority groups.
### Shift in Attitudes: Embracing Diversity
– **Cultural Awareness**: Increased cultural awareness and education have helped dispel stereotypes and promote cross-cultural understanding.
– **Legal Protections**: Anti-discrimination laws and equal rights movements have provided avenues for marginalized groups to challenge discrimination and seek justice.
## The Road to Equality: Lessons for the Future
The transformation of Italian Americans’ status in America from facing discrimination to enjoying widespread acceptance offers valuable lessons for achieving equality for all marginalized communities.
– **Unity and Solidarity**: Standing together and advocating for equal rights can drive significant social change and combat prejudice effectively.
– **Education and Awareness**: Promoting cultural education and raising awareness about diverse communities can foster empathy and respect among all citizens.
In conclusion, the decline of discrimination against Italian Americans in America is a testament to the power of community resilience, cultural pride, and social progress. By applying the lessons learned from this journey, we can strive towards a more inclusive and equitable society for all.
By creating a culture of understanding, empathy, and respect, we can pave the way for a future where discrimination and prejudice are relics of the past. Let’s continue to celebrate diversity and embrace the richness that different cultures bring to our collective tapestry. Together, we can build a brighter and more inclusive future for generations to come. 🇮🇹🇺🇸 #EqualityForAll
Same with the Irish, they became a big enough voting block that politicians started to cater to them. That’s how we got Columbus and St Patrick’s Day.
It’s already starting to happen with the Latino vote.
Second generation and beyond Italians aren’t visually discernible from other white people, at least to the average American.
Some people may dress or talk a certain way that still subjects them to some discrimination. But if you see a second generation Italian guy walking down the street you’re not gonna know it like you would a lot of other races.
The melting pot melted them in, same as the Irish. They adapted, lost some traditions and accent and got folded in.
The biggest factor in this not happening is *appearance*. Irish and Italians looked like the majority of the existing population so disappear in a crowd. People who physically look different in unchangeable ways, or who refuse to give up very visible cultural or religious practices, are still easily “othered”.
Some good answers already, but it’s important to note that the genesis of discrimination against Irish and Italians was anti-Catholicism. When Catholicism became more accepted in mainstream American society (as evidenced by the election of an Irish Catholic president in 1960) the discrimination against so-called “white ethnics” really fell by the wayside
To add to other points already in this thread, part of their othering was due to their Catholicism – after a century Protestant Americans slowly learned they’re not going to make America bend their knee to the Pope.
Like the Irish and some Jewish people before them, once they gained enough social and political power , they were granted whiteness. Previously , they were not considered white and all of the stereotypes which you still hear about black people, were applied to them (good at physical activity like sports or dancing but not mental endeavors or high arts etc) but eventually they were simply considered white. This came along with heavy participation in the police force where, not coincidentally, they were often considered some of the most racist and brutal cops on the East Coast.
Religion was a significant motivating factor in anti-italian and anti-irish discrimination. As America became more secular there was less motivation to focus on such differences — further, the religious Protestant mainstream found more common ground with Catholics as a bulwhark against secularization. Further, WW2 became a point of shared experience, where Americans from around the country were forced to work together, read the same army material, and eat the same type of food. This is understood as an essentially “Americanizing” event, where young men would basically be conditioned into a uniform understanding of their place in society and other whites would see and treat them as equal. Finally, suburbanization and “urban renewal” meant the destruction of the traditional political and social bonds that defined various white ethnic groups, essentially forcing them to assimilate into the American mainstream (Which in turn was influenced more heavily by them and their food).
The number of first generation Irish and Italian is way less than it was. These days the only clue to heritage would be names.
There’s many reasons, one overlooked I haven’t seen mentioned here is how popular culture ( think celebrities, movies, and music ) changes people’s viewpoints over time. More so than any legislation. By around the 60-80s we’d see a dramatic change towards feelings about Italians. They were still seen as criminals often times, think organized crime and targeted actions by police, but we see their culture become in vogue. Fashion, lifestyles ( during the 80s everyone wanted to look like a wise guy ) and this sort of thing. Overtime they become more accepted.
In this regard we’ve seen it start to happen with other ethnic groups. Different ethnic Asians with their culture especially food and arts ( lol anime), Latinos in music and style, Black Americans in sports and other aspects of culture. All this adds up overtime. ( just some examples there’s tons more obviously ). When people start to gravitate towards aspects of your culture we see this.
The sad part is it takes time, keep on mind when each ethnic group really got rights. Italians and Irish were a bit earlier to the party ( for rights not living in the US).
I’m surprised the majority of answers are so logical: anti catholic
As if bigots are rational and would take the time to learn someone’s religion before deciding to discriminate.
I propose that bigots, in addition to being bigots, are also lazy. They prefer to discriminate on something easier. Something that does not take research
And therefore, discriminating based on skin color, LGBT, and people who wear certain outfits is gaining popularity. They are easier and require no research
WW2 was the major turning point for anti Catholic sentiments.
People fought and died side by side with their fellow Americans and all the questioning of whether a Catholic cared more about the Pope or the President washed away.
Not as often as it did for my parents, but it still happens, even today.
Especially outside of the major Italian-American hub of the Central-Northern New Jersey / New York City / Connecticut / Delaware area.
I was shocked to personally come across it (and be the focus of it) multiple times in South Jersey.
The main reason it’s better than before is that we’ve integrated our culture with American-American culture. The big turning point began in the late 1970s, and culminated in the 1990s to the point of the pizza craze (which wasn’t the *reason* but an indicator — it was no longer “weird”). Also Catholicism isn’t as big of a bogeyman as it once was, either.
But we’re still portrayed pretty piss-poorly in the media. I found it heartwarming in the 3d Mario movie that they did a bunch of things right. But most of the time it’s gangsters, guidos, trash talk, and other crap like that.
In a surprisingly sad number of places in the US we’re *still* kinda seen as “white by technicality and when convenient.”
At the time of their discrimination they were a large chunk of the immigrants coming into the country, so they got blamed for all the issues that people blame immigration on.
There’s a great deal of people coming from Mexico, and currently that is a huge point of contention in US politics and they are often discriminated against.
The second largest group Irc is Indians and Southeast Asians. Discrimination against these 2 groups, especially Indians, has also increased a great deal over the years.
China is also a large source and these immigrants are also discriminated against, especially since COVID.
Immigration comes in waves from different countries. These immigrants build local communities and then integrate. Until then they receive discrimination. Then by the time that they are accepted their wave of immigration has past and it’s another group.
People still talk shit about Italians. I was at a family friend’s house, and the hostess proceeded to tell Italian joke after italian joke. Typical shit about hygiene and such. I just let her know that my grandmother was Sicilian. I don’t really consider myself Italian just because I had a Sicilian grandmother, but it was still offensive. I didn’t make a big todo about it and I tried to laugh it off.
They incorporated culturally.
What generally tends to happen is that they lose most of their traditions and cultural roots in favor of mainstream ones, while some of their cultural practices become incorporated into the more broad American culture.
Currently it’s happening a lot more with Mexican culture as well. Tequila is among the most popular spirits in the country, Modelo is the most popular beer, and you can find multiple Mexican food places in even the most rural of towns. Cinco de Mayo is a widely celebrated holiday and Mexican people face far less discrimination than they generally did 30 years ago.
Because they are less distinguishable as an “other” on the surface. Its too much work to discriminate against them or irish. The only reason jews still catch shit is because of crackpots and conspiracy theorists.
They’re no longer recent immigrants. They’ve so fully intermixed with the existing population that they are indistinguishable from the general populace. Having a surname like Rossi or O’Kelly is normal.
Couple of factors. It is good to know that some of it was the death of fervent anti-Catholicism, but…
During and after the abortion/reversing of Reconstruction they were allowed to be “white” in an effort to put an end to solidarity with other poor people and subjugated black people. The Irish famously benefitted from this change too.
They assimilated and enjoy a great deal of celebration, but it’s to serve a greater purpose to fulfill the “melting pot” American fantasy that maintains a status quo of institutionalized racism against the most vulnerable groups. You can’t have a society that marginalizes TOO many of its own cultural makeup so the ones that can pass will do their part to look pretty and aspirational.
If white supremacists get their way then it’s last hired first fired. The Italians and Irish still face mild discrimination in many private situations and will not be allowed to exist in an actual white ethnostate.
Because they, much like the Irish, became a large enough representation of the population to become the discriminators themselves.
It tickles me pink when people of Irish and Italian ancestry look down on todays immigrants, as if their ancestors weren’t running away from shitty issues in the old country and looking to make a better life for them and their future descendants.
Haters are gonna hate. It’s not at all about the victims of discrimination, it’s about the pathetic haters. My mother was Italian, my dad Irish. What blows my mind is how previous victims- who should know better- can turn right around and hate the new choice. All I can figure is that the haters are weak psychologically: they are afraid of change, they are afraid of life. They hate new people, new food, new creatures, new religions. Anything that is not part of their personal identity is feared and therefore hated. What a small, small life they have.
Italian American here.
For one Italians are not obvious to most people at all these days. A big part of it is that different European features aren’t super obvious to the untrained eye or except when in the extremes, and also that there is an extraordinary amount of diluted Italians in the US– its common to meet someone who is 50, 25, 12.5% Italian but not very common to meet someone who is 100%.
In addition there really isn’t a distinct subculture at this point. Most of the Italian foods have integrated and become de facto American cuisine, for a very superficial example. By contrast, Italians at the turn of the century often lived in very homogenous communities, which made them stand out quite a bit from everyone else. Christians have also largely accepted other denominations as legitimate and not a threat generally speaking— the US had a great fear of the Catholic church until the 1900’s, in the presumption it’d make an attempt to create an actual takeover of the US government.
I wouldn’t say it’s non existent – where I live Guinea tee/wife beater and guido are terms that are still very popular.
Well basically what happened was Italians and Irish (admittedly I’m not to educated on the amount of Irish hate) were looked at like trashy immigrants when major waves of them started coming to America. They were WOPS (without papers) to the British white but they soon realized that Italians, the Irish, and alot of people coming from that part of Europe were coming in swaths and essentially a whiteness scale was created. They were accepted but still looked at as less white, I mean it’s interesting to me there’s never been a president with Italian ancestory, I mean idc really as an Italian but you would have thought you’d have seen that before a black president, I of course mean no disrespect to black people I’m just talking about how history unfolded.
They also basically just all gathered in communities and we’re Catholic and weren’t causing trouble to the elites so they were a net positive in their view after so long as they built businesses and relationships with people outside of pockets of Italian communities. Also I truly believe this, yes the mob was bad and I don’t condone it but the mob gave Italians real credit because they became highly powerful and influential in American society for years. Even mob violence they really did stick to the code of leaving non mob people out of it and not accidentally killing totally innocent people. Did that happen of course it did again it’s the sentiment and they were as honorable as you can be as far as gangs go. It eventually all fell apart but people LOVE mob related stuff which absolutely gave Italians a good look not a bad one ironically.
I come from a family of Italians who’ve been in Oregon since around 1900 when my gr-gr-grandpa came from Italy. My grandmother when she was around 90 told us her memories of growing up in Portland in the 1920s & seeing signs banning blacks, Irish and Italians. That was around the time that the KKK helped elect the governor.
Being a kid in school at a very rural in not wet forest western Oregon but arid high-desert eastern Oregon town (wheat/cattle country) being told by a friend that he was shocked when he found out Italians were considered white. This was late 70s/early 80s iirc.
How ironic when I joined the Army many of the Italian-American guys I knew from NY/NJ/Mass were among the most racist people I’d ever met. 🤷🏻
too many other brown people to worry about other whites. once schools began to integrate, the color of ones skin mattered more than their cultural differences
African Americans were leveraged to break many of the Italian strikes in the 19th century and beyond, so some of the animosity likely translated to what we now understand as racism.
“Don’t hate us, hate THEM.”
Marketing campaign. Columbus was Italian. Columbus “discovered” America. Italians are American.
Seriously, Italian Americans promoted the Columbus discovered America exaggeration to combat racism against Italians in America.
As an Italian-American (specifically, Sicilian-American) it should have never stopped, we’re awful 😂
Because they aligned with the identity of “whiteness” in the US and became considered white over time with all it’s privileges.
because its easier to go after mexicans and blacks than it is to go after what is essentially “spicy white people”.
It’s a good question but the answer is darker than just assimilation, though. The courts had a big influence in defining who was white legally, and what privileges came with that. Black people were legally blocked from it. The legal changes, another other changes, pushed American culture to stop caring which European country immigrants came from, and instead focus on Black / White tensions.
This episode of a 3-part series answers your question in great detail:
https://www.racepowerofanillusion.org/episodes/three
My dad’s side is Sicilian–I’m third generation and never had an issue–but my dad who has both a very Italian first and last name still got some shit in the 80s. Even today he shortens his first name professionally.
My grandfather was the first to be born in America. He straight up changed his name from Jacopo to John to distance himself from it and refused to teach his kids Italian. We still have some family recipes and traditions that have survived, but those and our last name are all we have left. It also seemed like Sicilians were especially discriminated against–even other Italians were racist toward them, from what I’ve been told
The collective impulse to hate Italians because the generation before them did seems to be gone now, thankfully. Most assimilated and married other Europeans/Americans and basically started to blend in with the rest of them. WWII probably also helped bring people together.
One reason is religion, another reason is money.
The Irish and Italians were the working poor and essentially slaves in the old days (more so for Irish). There was a lot of negative sentiment around them mostly because of their religious divide from other caucasians.
Once their numbers grew though and their religion was more accepted and they started to have money (and thus power) they slowly got more welcomed into the rest of the population, especially since there was now other races to dislike even more.
And also Italian food was pretty good so I think that helped as well
The parallel I would use is Mexican Americans and immigrant Mexicans. Seems like Hispanics born here are anti Spanish speaking immigrants
Mexicans, black people and asians are the new hotness for hate. No need to hate Italians when you got easier targets who are not of european ancectry.
The Godfather movies were great (the first 2 anyway}, the Sopranos was great and pizza is delicious. Pretty simple.