The current edition of La Nostra Voce, the magazine published by The Italian Sons & Daughters of America includes the following glowing review of L’America. I am humbly thrilled and grateful.
It was a great turnout for my lecture and book signing this past Sunday, February 16, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware! This event was hosted by Friends of Italian Culture and was at Downes Cultural Center at Ingleside.
The lecture centered on the events leading up to World War 2 regarding immigration and assimilation that are covered in “L’America”. Also discussed was the screenplay I had written for the documentary, Prisoner’s Among Us. It is always rewarding to speak with the attendees afterward.
INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR JOSEPH ORAZI
His New Book “L’America” Follows The Paths of Three Italian Immigrants at the Turn of the 20th Century
– Main Characters Come from Naples, Calabria and Sicily
Did one group of Italian immigrants have it easier than the other?Joseph Orazi is no stranger to the dreams and struggles of Italian immigrants. In 2005, he was the screenwriter and associate producer for a riveting documentary on the internment of Italians in World War II titled “Prisoners Among Us.” Changing gears from writing for film to writing a new novel, Mr. Orazi conveys the struggles of three immigrants from different regions of Southern Italy in “L’America.” PRIMO gave the book a most positive review. We interviewed the author about his new novel and the Italian immigrant experience.
Your new novel “L’America” is a fictional account of Italian immigrants. What new insight about Italian immigration will readers gain after reading your book?
It is my hope that readers will learn the true story of immigration, when huge numbers flocked to our shores. Between the late 1800s and the early 1900s, millions of Italians, Irish, Germans, Slavs, etc made their way to America. While my story centers on Italians, it is actually the story of us all, no matter the country of origin. As far as Italians are concerned, we’re a pretty proud bunch, so many of the struggles to make it here were not spoken. We had to pry them out of first generation folks. So it was my intention to mine those stories of immigration, assimilation and the largely unknown events leading up to WWII. History has been neglected, I think. It’s important for younger generations to learn what it took for their ancestors to enable them to live the lives they do. I’m biased, but I think we owe it to them.
You dedicate “L’America” to your ancestors, i.e., Fuscas, the Fusias, LaChimias, Funaros and Orazis. Can you tell us a little about them?
The Fuscas, Fusias, La Chimias and Funaros were my mother’s side of the family, from Calabria. The Fusca name was the original. When my grandfather came to America, they got it right on Ellis Island. But when his brothers and sisters came over, immigration read the name wrong. The “c” had an accent above it. So they thought it was an “i.” So most of my family call themselves Fusias. It’s always fun to argue about it at family reunions. The Orazis were my father’s side from Ascoli Piceno.
“L’America” follows the harrowing journey to America of several characters from different parts of Southern Italy. They have different backgrounds and circumstances but they all have one thing in common: They want to leave Italy. Tell us a little about what made Italy so unattractive for people to leave at the turn of the century.In the 1800s, the Italian peninsula was made up of many different states. It was decided that it was in Italy’s best interest to unify into a single kingdom of Italy…and also one of Sicily. The country was racked with civil wars. Lands were redistributed. The Mezziogiorno (the area south of Rome) was devastated in particular. Poverty was rampant. It’s estimated that about 10% of the population decided that the only way to feed their families was to seek employment elsewhere. America became their beacon to a better life.
We have Sicilians, Calabrese, and Neapolitans making their way in the New World. Did one group of Southern Italians have it easier in America than another?There really were no differences in the assimilation experiences of Italians. All found it very difficult. Some were more successful than others in acquainting themselves of new language and cultures. Some returned home. Many stayed and sent for their wives and children later.
What’s next for you after this novel? You have done some exceptional work in film, most notably as the screenplay writer and associate producer for the award winning documentary “Prisoners Among Us.” Do you plan to purse filmmaking or novel writing in the future?I am currently working on Book Two of this two book series. It picks up the families’ stories in 1928 and follows them to 1946. I have written a treatment for a TV miniseries based on the books. I think it’s time for our story to be told. We don’t just off people and own pizza joints. So I’d like to write the scripts for that project.
Editor’s Note: Joseph Orazi gives us a captivating and well-written new novel in “L’America.” You can purchase the book at Amazon.com. As an author and screenplay writer who focuses on the plights of Italian immigrants, Mr. Orazi can share his in-depth knowledge and experience with Italian American organizations. To inquire about his availability to be a speaker at your next event, please contact him at josephorazi@gmail.com.
“Joseph M. Orazi gives us a captivating and well-written novel in “L’America.” The author is no stranger to the saga of Italian immigrants. He was the screenwriter and associate producer for a riveting documentary on the internment of Italians in World War II titled “Prisoners Among Us.” He delved into the subject to explore new angles and sub plots not normally covered. In “L’America,” Orazi tells the story of three men who find themselves on the same ocean vessel in steerage “in the belly of the beast called SS Santa Ana.” There is Giuseppe Mosca, a peasant farmer from Calabria who leaves for America to become a tailor. There is Aldo Grimaldi, a skilled contractor in Naples where corruption and nepotism has all but excluded him from the market. He hopes to restart his business in the United States where he believes work is won on merit instead of connections. Paolo LaChimia is the youngest of the three; a teenager from the streets of Palermo whose early life in crime leads him overseas. Dialogue between characters convey the conditions of past migration; much more dire and ominous than what we see today. In one scene, a ship’s steward explains steerage to Paolo. “Get used to it. This is the best it’s going to smell. Wait until we’re a week out. Then you will long for day…This is steerage. The occu- pants are nothing more than cargo with legs.” Historical photographs often show Italians by them- selves as a group of immigrants who arrived at Ellis Island. In truth, people from many different countries were represented on the same ocean liner. When Aldo gets settled inside the large boat, he sees “the strange assembly of nationalities and the drone of voices evoked a kind of Babel. There were Russian Jews, Irish farmers, Greeks, people strangely attired in kilts, Arabs in long robes, and even Cossacks with terrifying scowls and long, curved swords that hung from their belts in ornate sheathes. Thirteen days suddenly seemed like an eternity.” Orazi is an observant writer whose passion for history comes through in every scene and sentence. The reader is immersed in the past at every turn and twist in this incredible novel. Most appealing are characters who possess the hopes and flaws to make them approachable and understandable. Even on the rare occasions when they are at their worst, we somehow still root for them. Orazi is commended for writing such a profound novel that takes readers back to a time much different than our own. “L’America” will inspire in all of us inherent respect and admiration for those who came to give us a better life. “
F&L PRIMO / THIRD EDITION 2019 / 59
These [Cleveland] communities tended to congregate along lines largely defined by occupation. Big Italy became the center of the city’s fruit industry since many of the settlers came from Sicily. It was here that Frank Catalano introduced Cleveland to oranges, olive oil, figs, anchovies, and garlic. In Little Italy, stonecutters flourished. Seizing the opportunity for monument work in Lake View cemetery, Joseph Carabelli established what eventually became the city’s leading marble and granite works. Tailors worked in the garment industry. Landscapers tended to estates. And almost all who could read scoured the pages of La Voce Del Popolo Italiano. La Voce interpreted American law, emphasized citizenship, and offered news from the homeland. It was the first newspaper in the country to publish articles in both English and Italian. “
L’America, Chapter 17
Rag and Bone Man in early 20th century NYC
Those masterful images, because complete
Grew in pure mind, but out of what began?
A mound of refuse, of the sweepings of a street,
Old kettles, old bottles, and a broken can,
Old iron, old bones, old rags, that raving slut
Who keeps the till. Now that my ladder’s gone
I must lie down where all ladders start
In the foul rag-and-bone shop of the heart.
—William Butler Yeats, “The Circus Animals’ Desertion”
Very excited to share this poster of my upcoming lecture and book signing at Falvey Memorial Library o the Villanova campus Monday October 21st at 12:30 pm. I will be covering some unknown events during the early emigration of Italians to this country.
Light refreshments will be served at this Ciao Philadelphia co-sponsored event that is free to the public.
You are invited to attend!
Please join us on Monday, October 21 at 12:30 p.m. in Falvey Memorial Library’s room 205 for a talk by me – ’72 CLASS on L’America. I will discuss the late 19th and early 20th century emigration of Italians to this country, including the reason for the exodus of millions and the brutal passage via steamship during those years. I will cover the challenges of assimilation, concluding the largely unknown events (the labeling of Italians as enemy aliens, internment in camps throughout the country, and forced relocation on the west coast) leading up to World War II.
I hope to see you all there!
Villanova University ADdress
800 E. Lancaster Avenue
Villanova, PA 19085
“They began life in the new world shunted through chutes from
holding pens to processing stations on the modern model of
efficiently slaughtering livestock …
They believed with all their hearts in the pursuit of happiness,
and had pursued it all the way to this maze of chutes.”
—Carmine Sarracino, “Twelve Facts about the Immigrants”
Latest release to PRWEB :
https://www.prweb.com/releases/amid_immigration_tensions_in_the_u_s_author_and_playwright_details_italian_immigration_experience_through_new_historical_fiction/prweb16397563.htm