The mindless ignorant $hit coming from the @WBEN airwaves this morning was absolutely disgusting. Here’s a taste from their Italian American “Medal of Honor” recipient host:
If David Bellavia and WBEN think their Italian ancestors came to the US with a law degree or medical license in hand, they are a lot dumber than they look.
Most Italians who migrated to this country in the late 19th and early 20th century did so like many who come here today. With literally nothing. And if they showed up before 1921 like most of our ancestors there were practically ZERO laws or requirements for them to abide by.
The reasons Italians migrated to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries are strikingly similar to the reasons new wave of migrants are coming to the US today:
- Poverty: Italy was a poor country in the late 19th century, and many Italians were struggling to make ends meet. The United States, on the other hand, was seen as a land of opportunity, where people could come to start a new life and make a better living.
- Unemployment: Unemployment was high in Italy, and many people were unable to find work. The United States, on the other hand, was experiencing a period of economic growth, and there was a demand for labor.
- Political unrest: Italy was a politically unstable country in the late 19th century. There were frequent uprisings and revolutions, and many people felt that they could not live in peace in Italy. The United States, on the other hand, was seen as a stable and democratic country.
- Natural disasters: Italy was hit by a number of natural disasters in the late 19th century, including earthquakes, floods, and famines. These disasters displaced many people and made it difficult to make a living. The United States, on the other hand, was seen as a safe haven from natural disasters.
Many of the people who came here under terrible distress and horrible conditions, ended up making significant contributions to American society in a variety of fields, including business, agriculture, and the arts. the list is long.
But they certainly didn’t come here making $250k a year or get off the boat and buy houses on millionaires’ row upon their arrival to #Buffalo.
Most lived in tenement slums in a neighborhood called “the hooks”
Former brothels and hotels for canal workers and travelers became tenements. These three and four story brick buildings housing multiple families in crowded conditions. The tenements were poorly-ventilated, small rooms with little heat, frozen pipes in winter and little sunlight. Cholera and pneumonia were common in the tenements. Many of the immigrants lived in poverty. Rooms rented for $6/month (about $100-130 in current dollars). In 1890, one old hotel called the Revere Block, originally designed to hold 100 guests, had 1,040 residents living in crammed conditions. Reports in other buildings included 18 families crammed into four rooms; 56 people sharing eight bedrooms. Conditions in many of these tenements were disgusting and unsanitary. Social work organizations began working to help deal with the conditions in the district. Charity Organization Society and Miss Maria Love began to work with the churches around 1895, working to organize efforts against poverty throughout the City of Buffalo. Seventy-six churches, of 12 denominations, pitched in to help around the city. Each church was responsible for a district, working for the “moral elevation of the people, and for the relief of all the needy and neglected persons of whatever religious faith within the district”.
Most were unskilled, uneducated laborers who worked any job they could find in #Buffalo until they could better their lot in life.
Similar to the a$$holes we see and hear on places like WBEN, our migrant ancestors were met with much of the same hatred from local newspapers and media that people like David Bellavia and other WBEN hosts spew regularly on local radio.
Here’s a clip from our 2007 documentary “La Terra Promessa” that tells some of the struggles Italians faced when coming to this country in the late 19th and early 20th Century.
The context of the video was taken from a Buffalo newspaper article published on May 24th, 1891. Almost 131 years to the day:
So yeah, people (particularly Italian Americans like Bellavia) who continue to stereotype today’s asylum seekers and migrants for wanting a better life for themselves and their families is not only repugnant. It’s shameful.
If you don’t think your Irish, Polish or German ancestors had similar challenges to the migrants of today, you really should check your own history as well.
