January 3, 2026
When Sicilian immigrants arrived in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they were met with a harsh and often hostile reality. Although they had crossed the ocean in search of opportunity and dignity, they were quickly pushed to the margins of American society. Discrimination shaped nearly every aspect of their lives—work, housing, education, and social relations—creating a system of exclusion that was both widespread and deeply rooted.
In the labor market, Sicilians were largely confined to the hardest, most dangerous, and lowest-paid jobs. They worked as manual laborers building railroads and roads, digging tunnels, toiling in mines, or performing exhausting agricultural labor in the fields of the South and California. In northern cities, many were employed in factories under brutal conditions. Long hours, unsafe environments, and extremely low wages were common, and Sicilian workers were considered expendable—easily replaceable and unworthy of protection.
Their vulnerability was intensified by their exclusion from labor unions, which often refused membership to Southern Italians. Unions viewed them as uneducated, culturally inferior, or a threat to wage stability. Without collective representation, Sicilian workers had no means to defend themselves against exploitation, abuse, or arbitrary dismissal. This isolation made them easy targets for employers who profited from their desperation.
Housing discrimination further reinforced their marginalization. Sicilians were often forced into segregated neighborhoods, known as Little Italy. These areas were not chosen out of preference, but out of necessity. Landlords in other parts of the city frequently refused to rent to Italians, pushing them into overcrowded, impoverished districts with poor sanitation and limited services. While these neighborhoods offered a sense of community, shared language, and mutual support, they also reinforced the perception that Italians were unwilling—or unable—to integrate into American society.
Access to education was another area of exclusion. Sicilian children were frequently discriminated against in public schools, mocked for their accents, appearance, or Catholic faith. Many were placed in inferior or segregated classrooms, while others left school early to help support their families. This limited educational access prevented social mobility and trapped many families in cycles of poverty for generations. Perhaps the most striking evidence of this discrimination was its open and unapologetic nature. Signs reading “No Italians, No Negroes, No Dogs,” were displayed on businesses, boarding houses, and workplaces. These messages made it clear that Sicilians were not simply unwelcome—they were dehumanized. Being publicly grouped alongside racial minorities and animals reveals how Southern Italians occupied a racial “in-between” status, excluded from the protections and privileges granted to those considered truly white.
This environment of rejection fostered fear, distrust, and social isolation. Many Sicilians learned to rely solely on family and community networks, avoiding institutions they perceived as hostile. Over time, this mutual suspicion between immigrants and mainstream society helped fuel negative stereotypes, including the widespread association of Sicilians with criminality—even though the vast majority were honest, hardworking people.
Yet, despite these obstacles, Sicilian immigrants endured. Through sacrifice, resilience, and strong community bonds, they laid the foundations for future generations. But the cost was immense: exploitation, humiliation, violence, and the gradual erosion of language and cultural identity.
Remembering this history is essential. The acceptance of Italians into American “whiteness” was neither automatic nor immediate—it was the result of decades of hardship and struggle. Their story reminds us that race is a social construct and that discrimination often operates through work, housing, and access to opportunity. It is a powerful lesson in migration, inequality, and resilience.
November 7, 2025
“I am an Italian-American”
A poem by Angelo Bianchi, Esq., 1982
I am an Italian-American. My roots are deep in an ancient soil, drenched by the Mediterranean sun, and watered by pure streams from snow-capped mountains.
I am enriched by thousands of years of culture. My hands are those of the mason, the artist, the man of the soil.
My thoughts have been recounted in the annals of Rome, the poetry of Virgil, the creations of Dante, and the philosophy of Benedetto Croce.
I am an Italian-American, and from my ancient world, I first spanned the seas to the New World. I am Cristoforo Colombo.
I am Giovanne Caboto known in American History as John Cabot, discoverer of the mainland of North America.
I am Amerigo Vespucci, who gave my name to the New World, America.
First to sail on the Great Lakes in 1679, founder of the territory that became the State of Illinois, colonizer of Louisiana and Arkansas, I am Enrico Tonti.
I am Filippo Mazzei friend of Thomas Jefferson, and my thesis on the equality of man was written into the Bill of Rights.
I am William Paca, signer of the Declaration of Independence.
I am an Italian-American; I financed the Northwest Expedition of George Rogers Clark and accompanied him through the lands that would become Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan. I am Colonel Francesco Vigo.
I mapped the Pacific from Mexico to Alaska and to the Philippines. I am Alessandro Malaspina.
I am Giacomo Belinimi, discoverer of the source of the Mississippi River in 1823.
I created the Dome of the United States Capitol. They call me the Michelangelo of America. I am Constantino Brumidi.
In 1904, I founded in San Francisco, the Bank of Italy now known as the Bank of America, the largest financial institution in the world. I am A.P. Giannini.
I am Enrico Fermi, father of nuclear science in America.
I am Steve Geppi, founder of Diamond Comics, the largest distributorship of comics on the planet.
I am the first enlisted man to earn the Medal of Honor in World War II; I am John Basilone of New Jersey.
I am an Italian-American.
I am the million strong who served in America’s armies and the tens of thousands whose names are enshrined in military cemeteries from Guadalcanal to the Rhine.
I am the steel maker in Pittsburgh, the grower in the Imperial Valley of California, the textile designer in Manhattan, the movie maker in Hollywood, the homemaker and the breadwinner in over 10,000 communities.
I am an American without stint or reservation, loving this land as only one who understands history, its agonies and its triumphs can love and serve it.
I will not be told that my contribution is any less nor my role not as worthy as that of any other American.
I will stand in support of this nation’s freedom and protect against all foes.
My heritage has dedicated me to this nation. I am proud of my heritage, and I shall remain worthy of it.
I am an Italian-American… (THE END)
October 6, 2025
INTRODUCING…..
PAULA ZOCCOLI
Is there anyone else in the Sun Lakes Italian American Club that can say they have relatives that were famous in Hollywood? Well, come say hello to Paula Zoccoli and she will tell you tales of Old Hollywood, where her family knew and worked with some famous stars in the silent movie era.
Her mother, a beauty queen, whose stage name was Mabel Perkins, was crowned “Miss Olympics” in the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, and was an actress with MGM studios. Her cousin, 2x removed, was Bob Vignola, who directed Marion Davies, Jean Harlow, and Clark Gable and was a neighbor and friend of Rudolph Valentino.
If you search Trivigno, Italy, on Wikipedia, you will find, ’It is the birthplace of the silent film actor and director Robert G. Vignola.”
Paula is also related to the actress Carol Lawrence, who was married to Robert Goulet, and Rita Lynn, her Godmother, known for the film, “A Bell for Adano.”
Paula was born in Hollywood, California. Her Grandmother, Celestine DeGrazia’s Italian family is from Trivigno, Italy, in the Province of Potenza, region of Basilicata, while her Grandfather, Vincenzo Randazzo’s family immigrated from Palermo, Italy.
Paula has two sons, eight grandsons, and one great granddaughter, the first girl in her family who is definitely the princess.
After graduating from San Jose Junior College, Paula worked in the dental profession, ultimately owning her own business in Dental Management.
She has lived in Savannah, GA, and San Jose, CA. Her hobbies are cooking, playing Mexican Train, traveling, spending time with her friends, going to plays and concerts and genealogy. Her two friendly, rescued Golden Retrievers keep her company and are great companions.
Paula has many friends and loves to cook for her family, making her own bread, pizza and pasta, and credits her mother in law for teaching her how to cook. Her home is always open to friends and family for lively games, conversation and food.
She enjoys the Sun Lakes Italian Club but would like a mystery solved. There is one other member who has family from Trivigno, Italy, and Paula would like to find out who they are. As she says, “We may be cousins.”
November 13, 2024
INTRODUCING…..
Assunta Iudiciani and Anna Milne
Welcome to two of our newest members, sisters Assunta and Anna, who have an interesting story of their family’s history in Italy, which includes living in Libya and Italy, before and after World War II.
Their family originally came from the small towns of Taurasi & Avellino, in the Campania district, near Naples.
Their mother and father and their families were part of the diaspora to Libya by Italian families. When World War II broke out, their Mom, who was fourteen, was part of a group of about 300 boys and girls aged seven to fourteen who were transported to safety in Italy to avoid the bombings.
Libya was considered the new “America” for the Italian emigrant in the 1930’s, and families settled in and around the city of Tripoli. One of the 26 coastal villages that was created, was Marconi, where they lived and farmed.
Their parents met after the war and married in 1950 in Tripoli, where both sisters were born.
In 1953, the families went back to Italy, and, as there wasn’t any work for the men, their father immigrated to the U.S., sponsored by his aunt who lived in Syracuse, New York.
Three years later, in 1958, the sisters, their Mom and a cousin joined the family in Syracuse, sailing on the ship Christopher Columbus.
Anna commented, “Ironic, isn’t it? America, our new world too!”
Eventually, they joined other family members in the Boston, Massachusetts area.
They both married, had two children each, a boy and a girl, with circumstances and family leading them to Arizona.
Memories of family meals, especially the big Sunday dinners with everyone at their house, family and friends looking forward to their mother’s delicious cooking. Their house had the biggest kitchen, where everyone congregated on Sundays and Holidays.
Speaking of kitchens…There were two kitchens in the home, one in the basement where frying eggplant and simmering fresh tomato sauce were prepared, keeping odors from infiltrating the upstairs where the family would eat. Their family canned their own tomato sauce in that basement kitchen. Assunta and Anna continue that tradition today.
Holidays were looked forward to, especially Christmas and Easter. Following the tradition of seven fishes for Christmas Eve dinner, Assunta shared a memory when Grandma had fresh eels for their dinner. Their cousin found them, and as boys will do, started to swing one around. When Grandma caught him, she got so angry she took that eel and smashed it on the table!
We can all remember when our Grandma got mad!!
Easter was the best holiday. New dresses, and Mary Jane patent leather shoes for the girls, with a hat and purse to match, along with short lace gloves to round out the outfit.
Dinner was a meat pie, Pizzagaina, salami, prosciutto, ham, and pepperoni, with mozzarella, ricotta, and parmesan cheeses.
“Momma would make a few of these meat pies for friends and family to take home,” noted Assunta.
Don’t forget the Easter bread with a hardboiled egg, also a veggie or green pie for the healthy vegetable.
Baking was also Momma’s specialty. Lemon cake, Sponge cake and Nonna’s cookies. Assunta kindly shared some of Nonna’s cookies with me and they are delicious.
Welcome Assunta and Anna and thank you for sharing your story with us.
If you would like our website to highlight your story, contact me at the email address below.
Diane Keneally
dzert1st@gmail.com
P. S. You can find the cake and cookie recipes on our Recipe page.
