Sunday,
November 05, 2006
Obit: Al Montesi:
Professor, Civil Rights, Anti-War Activist, Poet/Playwright/Author
The
ANNOTICO Report
Professor
Al Montesi was born in
and will placed to rest in
From
Domenick Candeloro on the
passing of Al Montesi:
It
is with great sadness that I write to inform you that Al passed away yesterday
at 9:30am after a courageous battle with cancer.
He
was an amazing individual and he will be greatly missed.
Funeral
arrangements are in
Visitation
at McLaughlin Funeral Home; Sunday November 5th from 4-8pm
Mass
at St. Francis Xavier College Church, Monday November 6th at 10:00am; Corner of
Grand and Lindell
Some
have put together the start of a web site to share the story of Al's great
life at
http://milwaukeerenaissance.com
/Godsil/AlMontesi
Al
Montesi was one of the most influential professors of
the civil rights, anti-war, and counter culture student activist/intellectuals/
writers/actors/artists at
Al
also was a key figure in the restoration of the
Al
was a charismatic teacher and a poet/playwright whose work will give him
due honor posthumously,
If word can get out to the thousands who love him that
his works are available.
"Italians in
His
latest book is a memoir of the struggles of his people when they first came to
To
order send $18 per copy(includes postage &
handling) to Al Montesi,
or e-mail Montesi@Milwaukee
Renaissance.com.
"Italians
in
My
primary reason for tackling this material is to honor the courage by which the
immigrant Italians overcame the distress and hardships they encountered after
first arriving in
Here
are a few paragraphs from "Italians
in
Italians
at the "Sunnyside Plantation"
They
then took boats up the river to Sunnyside. The contingent contained 98
families. However, it was not long before these newcomers became acutely aware
of the miserable conditions they found themselves in. The water was impure,
tree stumps were rotting in pools of stagnant water, their homes were shacks
with no screens on windows; there was no extra work to be had. Mosquitoes were
everywhere, and the malaria they carried took several lives. They were not only
brutalized by their living conditions, but cheated by the company store and its
management. Then too there was a language barrier between the owners
and the immigrants. Their claims of mistreatment and deplorable
conditions were totally ignored. They soon realized that they had been duped,
that all of the agent's promises for a better life were false. Moreover they
found that they were virtually prisoners of Sunnyside.
Al
Montesi, Sister Hyacinth, and Catholic Nuns
However,
there was an occasional rebel nun, a Sister Hyacinth, who was very instrumental
in my development. She was a merry nun and a beautiful one. She was the first
to direct my reading to poetry, which she loved dearly. But she was rebellious
in her stand against many of the rules of her own order. She was dainty and
daring, and even wore nonstandard shoes that must have been
specially ordered for her small feet. How she put up with
my shenanigans I'll never know. But on several days, I behaved in her class
rather badly. Although I kept the whole class in stitches by some of my antics,
the order and the decorum of the class was broken. But she seemed to take
pleasure in my antics and let me have my way several times. I often wonder what
happened to this
lovely lady. Years later when I taught classes at a Catholic
university, I was exposed to some bright and personable nuns, but none as
charming as Sister Hyacinth.
To
order a copy of "Italians of Memphis" or connect with Dr. Al, please
send an e-mail to Montesi@Milwaukee Renaissance.com
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ANNOTICO Reports
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