Thanks to H-ITAM@H-NET.MSU.EDU, Dominic Candeloro, Editor

WOP! by Salvatore LaGumina was the FIRST book to spur my "activism".
I originally was involved with merely advancing the study of Italian/American and Italian Culture/History, a "comfortable" and "satisfying" pursuit.

Back in 1973, LaGumina made me face that which I long wanted to ignore, because it brought back such painful memories, that were so distasteful to confront.

It was then that I decided that any of my future actions would be "double pronged",
To ACCENTUATE the Positive, and ELIMINATE the Negative.

I highly recommend WOP! It will either make you ANGRY, VERY Sad, and maybe even possibly MOBILIZE you to Action. [ See the notice for IAOV below]
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AIHA OFFERS "WOP" AGAIN.

WOP! A Documentary History Of Anti-Italianism by Salvatore LaGumina J. 1998.
Send a check for $20 to AIHA, 169 Country Club Road, Chicago Heights, IL 60411

More than two decades ago WOP: A Documentary History of Anti-Italian
Discrimination, became the first major publication on the topic of intolerance
against Americans of Italian descent.

That work delineated the record of antagonism and hostility that awaited Italian
immigrants and their issue by recording discriminatory episodes that were for the most part blunt, curt, and flagrant.  A re-visit of the woeful terrain indicates that current anti-Italian discrimination is manifestly disparate from the past in that  whereas in the pre-World War II era deprecating Italian Americans was blatant and unapologetic, its contemporary counterpart is much more subtle and elusive.

Discrimination in our times is in fact seemingly much less obvious, much more
implied and somewhat evasive indeed circumstances require that it appear to be
more subdued in view of society's great sensitivity toward ethnic prejudice, in view also of the greater societal prominence of Italian Americans in public life and of the anti-defamation activity of Italian American organizations.

But discrimination, stereotyping and demeaning Italian Americans has not vanished; it remains as a negative factor, albeit far less conspicuous.  The current basis for
anti-Italian discrimination lies in stereotyping, guilt by association and non-inclusion.

Various television shows in the 1970s and 1980s can be cited as promoting parodies and caricatures of Italian Americans as silly, boisterous and ignorant thereby
lending credence to an unflattering image of people who best serve society as the butt of jokes, completely devoid of positive features that deserve comment let alone
emulation. While de facto exclusion of Italian Americans in certain fraternal and recreation clubs is largely over, there are still instances in which ethnicity remains an impediment.

When avid golfer John A. Segalla, a wealthy Connecticut builder, was denied membership in a golf club because "you have an Italian name," he responded by building his own golf club in 1993.

As in the past linking Italian Americans with criminality remains the predominant characteristic of stereotyping. Given a spate of popular commercial and television movies such as Godfather I, Godfather II, Godfather III, The Untouchables, and Goodfellas, it could almost be guaranteed they would further reinforce Italian American criminality in the public mind.

Against this background it becomes possible, even acceptable, to describe Tony Barone, a respected Creighton University basketball coach, "with a face out of Goodfellas." One wonders whether the press would have been so heedless in describing other ethnic groups with disapproving connotations. 7' .""-

Acceptance of the criminal categorization stereotype is so endemic that even
otherwise esteemed jurists embrace its context.

In his lacerating decision while imposing life sentences to three convicted mobsters in May 1993, Senior United States District Judge Jack B. Weinstein relieved himself of observations which, while intended to be instructive, were widely condemned as destructive in that they reinforced negative images. After hearing testimony that individuals "had been lured into organized crime by the ethos of the neighborhood as young twigs bent by their seniors," Weinstein proceeded to assert, "I believe there is a large part of the young Italo-American community that should be discouraged from going into this line of work."

It is revealing to note that the pervasiveness of the stereotypical Italian American malefactor persists even among respected members of society.

Guilt by association is another insidious anti-Italian pattern. The mere suggestion that one bearing an Italian name is connected with mobsters or illicit activity is enough to consign the unfortunate individual to censure and disapproval.

This was clearly illustrated in 1992 when New York City Comptroller Elizabeth
Holtzman recommending against granting a city contract for a construction project to Frederick DeMatteis of the Leon DeMatteis Construction Co., despite the fact that his construction firm presented the lowest sealed bid for the work and that the firm had executed work projects satisfactorily for the city previously. Holtzman's attempt to link DeMatteis with convicted mobsters by insinuation, intimation and innuendo overrode ardent investigation and exculpation with the result that guilt by association
placed DeMatteis on the defensive. The latter, however, had the will and the resources to fight the smear tactic as well as the strong support of Italian American organizations, and went on to demonstrate that he had never l been connected
with the named crime figures and was instead a bona fide businessman who was
victimized because of his Italian ancestry.

The truth of the matter was sustained by the New Jersey Casino Control Commission which conducted a thorough review of his application for a casino service industry
license which it granted in January 1991.

Vindication for DeMatteis, and by extension to Italian Americans, came in DeMatteis'  appeal in a strongly worded brief of October 7, 1992 in which New York Supreme Court Justice Alice Schlesinger rebuked Holtzman and the city administration for denying DeMatteis a contract on spurious grounds that reflected ethnic prejudice.

Other than innuendo, speculation and guilt by association particularly by one with an Italian surname, there is simply no evidence of a probative value to show a link between petitioner and corrupt activity.

It was guilt by association, or more accurately the alleged sins of the father that formed the nexus of anti-Italian discrimination experienced by New York City Corrections Commissioner Catherine Abate. Media - preoccupation with her father's supposed unsavory past, rather than her exemplary record of twenty years of out-standing public service followed her appointment to a major law enforcement position in the nation's largest city.

Italian American organizations denounced the affair as inequitable and unjust
maintaining individuals should be judged only by their own actions and not alleged actions of any parent.

The smear campaign notwithstanding, Abate was able to retain her position. One
can only speculate that this was due to the steadfast support of Italian American organizations and officials.

While federal, state and city law-enforcement officials maintain that ordinarily agencies do not investigate backgrounds of people seeking positions there are exceptions - leading to speculate that these exceptions escalate when Italian Americans are involved.

Altogether sufficient data has surfaced to indicate that discrimination still abides. While the grossest, bluntest and most desensitized examples of yesteryear happily have been relegated to the dust bin of history, the more sophisticated, astute and elusive types remain on the scene to varying degrees.

Anti-discrimination laws, greater sensitivity and proper education have all helped to diminish discrimination of course; however, it would be foolish in the extreme to
believe that bigotry is over. Without succumbing to paranoia it seems prudent to be aware of its pernicious presence and detrimental possibilities.

Stereotyping, defamation, and caricaturing have been visited on virtually every ethnic group to enter the U.S.A., thereby confirming a paradox in human relations. The nation that rightly boasts of its welcoming record of newcomers from all over the globe also hosts divisive elements that denigrate new arrivals.

This clearly has been the case for Italian immigrations in the late nineteenth century.

As the largest nationality group among the 'new immigrants' and as the second
largest immigrant group on record, Italians have been subject to some of the most blatant, brutal, and course forms of discrimination to affect any peoples.

This volume is the first to systematically investigate and record anti-Italian discrimination in the U.S.A. Although partially known, the full accounts have never been presented in a detailed in-.depth and comprehensive recounting of the phenomenon until the publication  of this volume (originally in 1973).

Salvatore J. LaGumina teaches at Nassau Community College.
Cover illustration by Jacques Cournoyer. $20     -ISBN 1-55071-047-8

WOP! A Documentary History Of Anti-Italianism
Table of Contents
The Embryonic Stage (Pre-1880)
The Maturation of Anti-Italianism (1880-1890)
Xenophobia During the High Tide of Italian Immigration (1890-1914)
Roman Catholicism as an Obstacle to Assimilation (1890-1914)
The Establishment's Solution to the "Foreign Problem" (1914-1930)
Anti-Italianism in the Vortex of Economic and Political Turmoil (1930-1945)
The Post-World War II Period: Ongoing Problems
Notes
Bibliography
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ACCENTUATE the Positive, ELIMINATE the Negative!!!!

Speaking out with One Voice against Negative Stereotyping

Italian-American One Voice Coalition is a national network of activists enabling the Italian American community to act as one united voice when dealing with defamation, discrimination and negative stereotyping.

Member organizations provide a liaison with the IA One Voice Coalition to disseminate information to the Italian American community and protest with one voice against each outrage against our heritage, culture and character.

Italian American One Voice - Who We Are

Web Site:
Italian American One Voice Coalition
http://www.italianamericanonevoice.org/iaindex.html