Sail On! Sail On! Sail On and On!

MR. HEADMASTER, Mr. Di Ieso, members of the faculty, students of Dorchester High School.

I have been asked to speak this morning as we pause to honor Christopher Columbus, the admiral of the ocean sea, and the accomplishments and contributions of Americans of Italian descent to our nation, the positive benefits of those who followed Columbus to America. It was best to begin this presentation with that famous poem for it emphasizes the theme that will run through this entire speech this morning-one of perseverance.

Columbus was a great sailor, a bold adventurer, a leader of men. Our world has seemed larger to most men since he proved that the earth was round, that men would not fall off the edge if they traveled too far to the West.

Because Columbus grew up on the coast, in Genoa, Italy, he developed a firm love of the sea and sea travel. He also grew up with books, constantly increasing his knowledge of the humanities and the sea around him.

When seeking to make his great journey to the west, Columbus went to King John of Portugal, but was not granted any funds as King John thought Columbus mad. And yet he persevered. At last, he convinced Queen Isabella of Spain to finance his journey. With his three ships, the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, he crossed the Atlantic Ocean. It is interesting to point out that one-third of his crew was composed of teenagers, black and white, some as young as fourteen. The journey across the Atlantic is a long one. I have crossed that ocean, in a vessel much larger and stronger than any of Columbus' ships. It is a long journey, the air is often raw, the winds harsh, the sea rough.

Columbus was told he would never return, that he would fall off the edge, that the sea was boiling water, that great sea dragons would consume his ships and his men. But he persevered. He sailed on and on. For well over a month they sailed west, seeking the islands of the East. His men threatened mutiny; they were about to turn back, when they reached the islands of the West Indies in the Caribbcan. Columbus became the first white man to set foot in the Western Hemisphere. His arrival was of great concern to the brown-skinned people of the island. Although he did not find the gold he sought he found the climate of the new lands quite accommodating and reported this to Queen Isabella, upon his return.

Columbus became a hero in Spain. He was hailed by all for his accomplishments. To the day he died Columbus believed he had landed in India: he did not realize that North America and South America even existed. He believed the world smaller than it really is.

Some have suggested that our entire continent or our nation should have been called Columbia, after Columbus. We all know that the name is derived from Amerigo Vespussi, an Italian who sailed with Columbus, and who later wrote a detailed account of his journey.

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS was the first man of Italian descent to come to our land. Many have followed since that time.

John Cabot, who also grew up in Genoa, sailed the seas for King Henry VII of England, and discovered North America. Thus both North America and South America were discovered by Italians. After Cabot's death, his son Sebastian Cabot continued his father's explorations. He discovered, among other things, the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, which serve to this day as a fishing ground for many nations. Another great explorer of Italian lineage was Giovanni Verrazano.

It has been nearly five hundred years since Columbus and Cabot came to the new world. Many other people of Italian descent have followed them.

Although the major immigration would not come for thirty years, 1848 saw the first wave of Italians come to America. Among these was Giuseppe Garibaldi who would later be a leader in the movement to unify Italy, and who lived on Staten Island in New York harbor for a number of years. These people came fleeing political repression as many have come to our shores since that time, most recently from Hungary in 1956.

Italian soldiers fought with distinction throughout the Civil War, most notably at Bull Run, Harper's Ferry, and Gettysburg.

No major immigration of Italian people to this nation occurred till 1880, nearly 400 years after Columbus. In the last decades of the nineteenth century, millions of Italians crossed the Atlantic, just as Columbus had, seeking a better life for themselves and their families. This wave continued until 1921, when the United States government imposed restrictions on immigration.

It was not a lack of love for Italy that placed the immigrant on the ship, but a hope for the future, in a new land, with new opportunities.

When my grandmother brought my infant father to these shores fifty years ago, she firmly believed that there was gold in the streets. Many others crossed the sea under the same impression, or under other false pretenses.

THE ITALIANS settled in the large cities, most of all in New York. It is a difficult transition for a man to go from a life devoted to farming, a rural environment, to life in the city, and a job in a factory. Whoever has come to our cities has found it difficult to continue living as he did before, with no fresh air, no animals, and no land. As all others, however, the Italian persevered and today despite all the troubles that were experienced, the Italian is among the most productive of Americans. Most came with few clothes and little money. Today they are among the most prosperous of Americans. Two of the factors keeping Italians together in hard times are religion and family. The majority of Italians are very close to their church. This keeps families together. The husband would be the first member of a family to cross the oceans. He would save as much as he could to pay for the passage of his wife and children.

Big cities began developing "Little Italics" where people working in the factories during the day could return to the language, food and customs of the "Old Country" at night. Boston's North End retains this flavor to this day. In these Little Italies, non-resident landlords took advantage of the immigrant, overcharging him for sub-standard housing. This was unjust, but there were no laws to prevent it. For many, much of their 60-hour a week salary as a factory worker, often in what we would call sweatshops, went towards paying the rent. This forced women and children to work under many conditions. Education was also a goal for these immigrants. Many a son of immigrant parents worked his way through high school and college.

In 1890, one fourth of all Italians in this nation were living in deplorable poverty, which meant that the family earned less than $450 a year. And yet these people persevered and they rose up the economic ladder.

LET'S EXAMINE the specific contributions of Italian-Americans to our society.

The Bank of America, the largest financial institution in the world, was founded by an Italian-American, A. P. Giannini. The Planter Peanut Company was founded by another Italian-American, Amedeo Obici, in 1906.

Italian-Americans have been very prominent in political life and public service. The first Italian political figure of any great repute in this nation was New York State Senator Francis Spinola who was first elected in 1860. Since that time many Americans of Italian lineage have entered political life and been successful. Most recently, these have been Mayor Joseph Alioto of San Francisco, U. S. Senator John Pastore of Rhode Island, and Anthony Celebreze who was Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare.

To be sure, the most prominent political figure of Italian descent was Fiorello La Guardia, who helped New York City survive the Great Depression of thirty years ago. Here was a man of the people in the finest sense of the word, a mayor who molded the citizens of New York together during the hardest of times.

In the field of music, the names of Enrico Carusa, the great tenor and Arturo Toscaniui, the conductor of the New York Philharinonic and the NBC Orchestra are known all over the world. Many other Americans with Italian roots have been prominent in art and music circles.

More recent and contemporary figures include Perry Como, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett, Jerry Vale, Liza Minelli, and Frank Sinatra. The atomic bomb was in part the work of Enrico Fermi who achieved the first nuclear chain reaction in America and who was present at the Los Alamos testing grounds. Fermi received the coveted Nobel Prize for Physics in 1938.

In athletics and all sports, Italian-Americans stand out. The late Rocky Marciano, undefeated Heavyweight Boxing Champion of the World, and a native of Brockton, comes to mind. Any fan of auto racing has head of Andy Granitelli, the STP man. Vince Lombardi is probably the world's best known football coach, Joe DiMaggio was recently voted the Greatest Living Baseball Player. When one thinks of the Boston Red Sox, he thinks of Tony Conigliaro, Rico Petrocelli and Frank Malzone. Look at a Patriot's Yearbook: Babe Parilli, Nick Buoniconti, Gino Capaletti.

America has been spoken of as a melting pot, but in truth it is not. Our nation has prospered and survived because different peoples while maintaining their own identity have been able to live peacefully and to prosper peacefully side by side.

While dweiling on this melting put concept, it is interesting to point out that Fiorello La Guardia's father was Italian, but his mother was Jewish, and that Roy Campanelia's father was Italian, while his mother was black.

This country has become great because men with vision have ventured to our shores seeking a better life.

This country will remain great only as long as all men continue to seek a better life for all our citizens. Unless this nation exists at peace at home and abroad, then the work of Columbus and Vespucci and La Guardia and all the other prominent people of Italian lineage mentioned this morning would be for naught.

I WOULD like to thank you for granting me this opportunity to speak to you this morning. I often conducted the Columbus Day Assembly when I was at Boston Latin School; I realize all the work that has been put into it.

I opened with a poem and I think I'll close with a few lines of sing-song verse I have written myself. I hope the message comes through.

Columbus sailed the ocean blue

In fourteen hundred ninety two.

Millions others have followed here,

Risking the cold, the wind, the fear.

Our nation's past is truly great,

And yet it's filled with constant hate.

Until we set our country straight

The end remains it's only fate.

Black and white-together stand

Irish and Jew-hand in hand

Italians-an alliance grand

Tell this tale of our free land.

And so we hope the story's clear.

That it doesn't only appear

Of Columbus and ocean blue.

Way back then in ninety two.

Thank you very much.