L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 14 L'Italo-Americano LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE D e a r r e a d e r s , a M a r c h m i n e - strone of Italian connections for you: March 17, 1861 is the day the Kingdom of Sardinia c h a n g e d i t s n a m e t o Kingdom of Italy. Here is a brief look back at the "new management." The Kingdom of Sardinia w a s r e p l a c e d b y t h e Kingdom of Italy. Victor Emanuel II became King o f I t a l y a n d w i t h m i n o r c h a n g e s , t h e S a r d i n i a n Constitution was also adopt- e d i n I t a l y . V e n e z i a w a s annexed in 1866 and Rome o c c u p i e d i n 1 8 7 0 ; I t a l y ' s borders remained the same until 1918. It was the first time that Italy was united u n d e r a n I t a l i a n r u l e r ( V i c t o r E m a n u e l I I ) . Italy and the Italians had many problems to be solved. D'Azeglio said: "We made I t a l y , n o w w e m u s t m a k e Italians." Physical charac- teristics and the different cultures of the country made u n i t y v e r y d i f f i c u l t t o b e achieved. The contrast was t h e g r e a t e s t b e t w e e n t h e North and the South. Italy was for the most part agri- cultural. Industry that exist- e d w a s a l l i n t h e N o r t h . S e v e n t y - f i v e p e r c e n t o f Italians were uneducated in 1861, but Naples and Sicily had ninety percent illiteracy. S p e a k i n g m a n y d i f f e r e n t dialects and coming from seven different states, the Italians were hardly aware of their common culture. Mazzini himself acknowl- e d g e d t h e f a i l u r e o f h i s "educators" to arouse the people into unity. In the name only, the unifica- t i o n o f I t a l y w a s a c h i e v e d b y m e t h o d s e x h o r t e d b y M a z z i n i a n d Garibaldi. M o n e t a r y d i v e r s i t y , weights, measures and stan- dards of education played a big role in maintaining a political, economic and cul- tural autonomy in various s t a t e s . O n l y o n e e l e m e n t was a common legacy: suf- fering under foreign rulers. The Catholic Church was no help. The Pope had lost his t e m p o r a l p o w e r s w h e n Rome was taken in 1870. T h e G o v e r n m e n t o f I t a l y t r i e d t o a p p e a s e h i m b y enacting laws guaranteeing the Pope's ownership of the Vatican and Lateran places a n d t h e v i l l a o f C a s t e l Gandolfo, made him head of s t a t e , a n d a s s u r e d h i m three and one quarter mil- lion lire per year. Pope Pius IX refused and shut himself in the Vatican, called on foreign nations to intervene, forbade catholics to vote and to hold office in the government. This was greatly ignored by Italian c a t h o l i c s . S u f f e r i n g a n d resentment, especially in the South was blamed on liber- als, and in 1876, many of them were voted out and the majority of deputies belon- ged now to the Left. A l l t h e e x p e c t e d t a x reduction on the poor and reforms for the South did not take place, and Depretis w a s s o o n r e p l a c e d b y Cairoli, who served for only six months. Meanwhile on J a n u a r y 8 , 1 8 7 8 , V i c t o r Emanuel II died, and was s u c c e e d e d b y H u m b e r t I . Depretis took power again. In July 1879, Cairoli came back to power, bur resigned after five months. With all t h e s e s e e m i n g l y h e l p l e s s governments, Italy was left with very little respect at home and abroad. T h e p a r l i a m e n t b e c a m e a p l a c e t o exchange favors, many cabinets were formed to pro- vide opportunities for politi- c i a n s a n d t h e i r f r i e n d s . Elections were often "made" rather than "held". Depretis governed with help from the R i g h t a n d f r o m t h e L e f t . There was very little distinc- tion between the two parties. This became known as the era of Trasformismo. It lasted until 1915. The politics of Italy were m a n i p u l a t e d b y s k i l l e d p o l i t i c i a n s . A g o s t i n o Depretis, Francesco Crispi and Giovanni Giolitti gov- erned with dictatorial pow- e r s . T h e y w e r e a r t i s t s i n Advancing our Legacy: Italian Community Services CASA FUGAZI If you know of any senior of Italian descent in San Francisco needing assistance, please contact: ItalianCS.org | (415) 362-6423 | info@italiancs.com Italian Community Services continues to assist Bay Area Italian-American seniors and their families navigate and manage the resources needed to live healthy, independent and productive lives. Since Shelter-in-Place began in San Francisco, Italian Community Services has delivered over 240 meals, over 900 care packages and made over 2000 phone wellness checks for our seniors. s e c u r i n g p e r s o n a l a l l e - giances. This was the way Italy was ruled until 1915. *** Automobile sharehold- ers of Fiat Chrysler and PSA, the French maker of Peugeot, Citroen and Opel c a r s , v o t e d r e c e n t l y t o merge. The new company, to be called Stellantis, will i n c l u d e t h e J e e p , R a m T r u c k s , A l f a R o m e o a n d Maserati brands. It would be the world's fourth largest c a r m a k e r , a f t e r T o y o t a , V o l k s w a g e n a n d t h e R e n a u l t - N i s s a n - Mitsubishi Alliance. *** B o o k s o n P i e m o n t e i n English, that you will enjoy i f y o u r r o o t s a r e i n t h e Piemonte region of Italy. Peter Nichols, Piedmont and the English (London: Hugh Evelyn, 1967). In spite of the title, this is a history of Savoy and Piemonte right up and into the economic boom of the 1950s and '60s. A n t h o n y L . C a r d o z a A History of Turin (Turin: Giulio Einaudi, 2006). For in person, post pan- demic pleasures contact the Piemontesi Nel Mondo of Northern California, m a i l i n g a d d r e s s i s 6 7 8 Green St #3, San Francisco CA 94133. *** ITALIAN TELEVISION KSCI CANALE 18. Presentano: Maria Cristina Heller e Franco Brescia Teleitalia in onda tutte le Domeniche alle ore 13 o 1:00pm Siamo collegati con i satelliti DISHNET e DIRECTV, SPECTRUM E TUTTI I CAVI DEL SUD CALIFORNIA Per Informazioni e Pubblicita` telefonate a (818) 260-9318 Cell: (818) 288-2518

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