Multicultural Literature in Contemporary Italy Short Story Responses

“Return”

            Fatima Ahmed’s story titled “Return” was focused around a girls story about traveling back to her home country. She talks of the treacherous journey from the Vietnamese countryside to Cambodia, her homeland. When she was twenty-one she was taken from her homeland of Phnom-Penh to Somalia by her father, “to save our skins.” The violence made it unsafe to stay. She reminisces on saying her goodbyes to the ones she loves in addition to her interactions with local upon her return. Throughout this story, her reflections and memories of her loved country kept resurfacing making her overjoyed to be back.

            In particular, Ahmed speaks of the instance when she returned and had a jug of freshly squeezed sugarcane. She states, “I will never forget that juice, delicious, fragrant and fresh” (pg 32). This love for the food and drink from home is similar to a character described in Amara Lakhous’s book Clash of Civilizations over an Elevator in Piazza Vittorio. The character named Parviz had a serious hatred for Italian cooking. He greatly preferred the tastes and spices of his homeland and spoke of them often within the text. Both character’s love of their homeland’s food can be witnessed in each of these texts.

“Give Me Back My Coat”

            This short story entails a very depressing tale about a man so enthralled with the idea of death. He has encountered tough times as far as unemployment and debt and loathes on the fact of ending his life. Sadness and disgust for life are the themes found throughout his short story. He talks about his reasoning behind his thoughts and methods of death. These include such things as taking pills that would not suffice due to the amount of anxiousness he would feel in addition to falling which he feared because he believed that he would uncover the meaning of life mid-fall. In the end of his short story he talks about going out and getting a drink on a cold night. While out his coat, which is one of his very few last meaningfully possessions, gets stolen. This is when, as he sees it, things couldn’t get any worse.

            In the beginning of this short story, he talks about death. The author states how “Death is the only things that can save me from all of my struggles” (pg 38). This theme of struggle and sadness can also be seen in many of the faces of those I work with at the Refugee center. It is obvious that the people at the refugee center have gone through many rough struggles and display their hardships on their faces and work in solitude at the center. In both of these circumstances, the theme of pain can be seen.

“Light Beer and Peanuts”

            In this short story the idea of finding ones identity is a common theme found throughout. An Indian girl was forced to give up her identity due to her fathers strong beliefs that India was, “a place to be avoided with care, a place to not get to know, to be erased” (pg 46). With no identity found in the ethnicity she found home in, she found it even more difficult to fit in and relate to the Italian society. She constantly straightened her hair and bathed in sun lotion in order to try and fit in. In the end she realized that she is too white while also being too black to ever fit in. There were just too many differences for her to find identity within one culture.

            This story brought up interesting ideas surrounding acceptance within a culture. The author states, “ I wanted a whole population to accept me and put aside its traditions, its dogmas and its castes” (pg 47). This idea of wanting acceptance can also be seen in the want of the Immigrant population to be accepted into Italian society as we have learned in class. In Italy, immigrants are strongly looked at as outsiders and integration into Italian society is unheard of. This similar idea of wanting to be accepted into a culture can be found in both circumstances.

“The B-Line”

            This short piece was rich in metaphors talking about borders the strife of language. This theme of language can be witness throughout by looking at the language of the musician, the wordless exit as well as the reference to their native language being, “the boat that ferries my thoughts” (pg 54). Words, as seen in this piece, are an important factor to any society. This is evident in our discussions in class about what really makes up an Italian. This topic of conversation can never go too far without the issue of one’s language being an integral part. It is the basis for understanding ones roots or if someone fits in. In the end, language is the key to ones identity and Italy is no exception.

“The Beggar”

            This is a story about an old blind man who spends his time begging in front of a church asking for words. He is a poet who is in search of the words to fill his poems. Such words as “family,” “glory,” and “unconstitutionally” were some of the words he would receive in his box. The meaning I took from this short story entailed the importance of words in life. In addition, it is important to understand that every person has their own experiences and their own “words” to share and teach with others. In this the language and diction one choses is a representation of one’s identity. This idea of linking one’s identity to their language stems from many of our discussions in class. Based on one’s diction, it becomes apparent of where a person is from, their background to an extent and their lifestyle. This can be seen when we studied the North and South divide in Italy. We talked about how there were differences in the language between North and South that divided the country. Similar to how in this story one’s word they give to the blind man symbolizes who they are, one’s diction and way of talking signals to others information about themselves.

My Own Interpretation...

In my piece that we created in class, I depicted the separation of ideas and the confusion that comes along not having a sense of home. This idea is drawn from the “Light Beer and Peanuts” piece in the Multicultural Literature in Contemporary Italy. On one side of the separation there is Italy while on the other there is India. The main themes of the short story can be depicted in the bold words “Anger,” “Family” and “Borders.” The overlying theme in this piece is the questioning of one’s identity as the main character is doing in the story. Confusion circulates her identity which therefore explains its’ location within the question mark. Quotes are drawn to depict each setting and written on each of their respective sides. All of this helps depict the idea of confusion of one’s identity that can be seen in the “Light Beer and Peanuts” short story.

Blog 6: Exploring Rione Trevi

            Even after living in Rome for almost two months, I do not know much about the rione Trevi. All I know is that this area is home to one of the top tourist attractions, the Trevi Fountain. One goes there to take a picture, throw a coin in the fountain and then moves on. For this assignment, it was enjoyable to be able to go back to explore and to interact with the people of this area instead of just going to see the fountain. My initial impressions as well as my experiences in the interviews with the people of this area helped shape my views of the Rione Trevi. Before further exploring the Rione Trevi I was faced with many questions. I wondered what beyond the fountain the Rione Trevi offered? In addition, I was curious to know who the residents of the Rione Trevi were since from my first visit, all I could really pick up on were the large amount of tourists.

When Marson and I visited our rione, we were able to really dive into the area and get a better understanding of the environment. We decided to head to the area around the Trevi fountain and explore from there. Of course we chose the one day when it was torrentially pouring rain the entire time. This led for probably a skewed view of the area. The streets and shops were mainly empty and tourists were hiding out inside. Instead of taking in the surroundings on my walk there, I found myself with my head down trying to avoid the monstrous puddles that were becoming good friends with my socks. I did notice that as we neared the Trevi fountain, more and more shops were becoming tourist oriented. There were souvenir shops galore, gelato stands at every corner and English menus waiting outside every restaurant. Once at the Trevi fountain, street vendors worked hard to catch your eye to sell you umbrellas and toys. This particular area was very tourist oriented but once we wandered back a few streets the area looked vary familiar to the neighborhood where we live. Small jewelry shops, clothing shops and bakeries were on every block.

Through talking with others we were able to get other’s perspectives on the rione Trevi. We first set out to speak with a resident of the Rione Trevi in order to get to know the area better. After wandering around awhile, we found ourselves at a gelato store around the corner from the trevi fountain. Here we spoke with an Albanian female whose store served as the perfect hide out from the pouring rain outside. She had immigrated to Italy from Albania ten years ago and was a student here studying international relations. She spoke of the high population of immigrant workers in the area due to the low pay they will take compared to Italians. We thought it was fitting that the person we decided to interview fit well with our program’s ideas since she was an immigrant youth. When we asked her about the neighborhood she talked about how the Trevi area was mainly focused around the tourists and the fountain. There were many commercial buildings most of which were very tourist oriented. Tourism and the fountain are very important aspects to this area since they bring in a lot of money. The fountain draws the tourists in and the stores, restaurants and gelato stands reek the benefits through making dents in these tourist’s pockets. Due to the rione Trevi’s location in the historic part of town, living there is very expensive. Many who worked in the Rione Tevi lived outside and commuted to work. We then shifted to talking about her views on the rione Trevi. Overall, she really liked the area due to the character of the buildings and the location in the city. I found myself wondering if others in this area had similar impressions of the rione Trevi.

The next people we talked with were a Swedish couple visiting Rome for the first time. They were only in Rome for four days and were hitting all the top sites on their visit. The only reason for their visit to the rione Trevi was to check out the fountain. They didn’t know anything more about the area other than the fountain. When asked about their initial impressions on the rione Trevi, they mentioned how the weather had definitely made an impact. Instead of really being able to enjoy the sites on their walk from the pantheon, they were rushed and trying to avoid getting drenched. The husband stated how once he rounded the corner and got a view of the fountain, that he was surprised by the sheer size of the fountain. They said that overall they liked the area and if given more time in Rome, they wouldn’t mind spending more time exploring the area. Since many don’t really explore the rione Trevi other than the fountain, I think it would be interesting for tourists to try and escape the tourist traps around the fountain and explore more of the surrounding area. Hopefully tour books will include insights on exploring more of the area around the Trevi fountain since there are a lot of cute shops and beautiful buildings with a lot of character.

Overall, I greatly enjoyed my experience exploring the rione Trevi. It was great to go back to this area that I don’t really get the chance to go to other than visiting the fountain. Talking with both people that were familiar with the area and those who were just passing through was interesting to get their differing viewpoints on the region. It is a gorgeous area that never really gets explored other than the immediate area around the fountain. After leaving the rione this time I was only left with more questions. Why was this area filled with wealth? How much money does tourism bring into the rione? Where are some of the resident’s favorite places to spend their time in the rione since they are hard to spot in the region directly surrounding the Trevi fountain? In order to find answers to these questions I will need to return to the area and speak with more knowledgeable people as well as do research online.

Response to Intro and Salvation Chapters in Multicultural Reading

The “introduction” and “salvation” chapters of Multicultural Literature in Contemporary Italy by Marie Orton and Graziella Parati made for a very interesting read. Many of the issues followed closely with the topics discussed in this program. The “introduction” segment talked a lot about migrants and in particular those in Italy. There was a lot dealing with the difficulty surrounding one’s identity as an immigrant in Italy. An interesting topic brought up dealt with how literature is the ideal forum for identifying the anxieties around the present and future Italian identity.  The topic of school children was brought up when the example of the text entitled, “Uno su trenon parla italiano ma qui nessuno e straniero” was used to demonstrate how text can be used in the issue of Italian identity. A few weeks ago we looked at similar topics when we were touring and learning about the Italian school system and how immigrant children in schools play a role in the Italian identity.

The second part entitled “salvation,” talked about an immigrant’s ideas and viewpoints on the issue of immigration in Italy. He talked about his cousin’s brother in law that was attempting to immigrate to Italy. He strongly advised against immigrating to Italy. It became obvious in this chapter that this immigrant had strong disgust for Italy and the government that made it hard to be happy living in Italy as an immigrant.  From my experience working in the refugee center and after reading the book Clash of Civilizations Over an Elevator in Piazza Vittorio, it seems as if this anger and unhappiness as an immigrant in Italy is a common theme. It makes me wonder why so many are choosing to immigrate to Italy if there are so many unhappy immigrants. As stated in this chapter, the government likes the immigrants due to their aid with taxes so why doesn’t the government devise plans to make coming to Italy as an immigrant a more inviting experience?

Blog 5: Trip to Naples

            Upon hearing we were going to Naples as a part of our program, I was overcome with a mix of emotions. On one hand, there was my friend Gianmarco who is Italian and grew up in Naples. He does nothing but rave about his town. From the beautiful scenery to the outstanding food, he claims it is the best area in Italy. My mother, on the other hand, described Naples in a different light. She talked about her visit many years ago and the disgust she felt about the city. My mother described the setting of Naples as being a place no one would ever want to visit. She depicted it as dirty, unsafe and filled of unfriendly people. Her impression followed the lines of many of the stereotypes we have learned about in class of the south of Italy.

Prior to my arrival into Naples, I tried to keep an open mind by not labeling the city with either of their depictions. Our reading by Gabriella Gribaudi titled, “Images of the South” helped to alleviate the negative portrayal of Naples. She states, “It is a place of the soul and an emblem of the evil which occurs everywhere, but which in Italy has been an emblem of the evil which occurs everywhere, but which in Italy has been embodied in just one part of the nation’s territory” (page 73) By reading this before our arrival, it made it seem almost as if Naples was just labeled with these negative stereotypes and was maybe not as evil as a place as my mom had made it sound. I did however not let my guard down and decided to keep a heightened level of awareness of my surroundings in order to stay on the safer side. I tried to take in as much as possible to try and better understand these stereotypes as well as the fear in many tourists when visiting this city of the south.

As the train arrived I was instantly confronted with a major difference from the Rome I now know and other Italian cities I have become familiar with of the north. The skyline was dotted with high rises, modern buildings, and monstrous apartment buildings. Walking from the train station to our hostel I was able to see a trend in the architecture of the buildings, street shops and people that fed into my initial impressions of Naples. Things tended to be more modern, less colorful and the streets were less full of life compared to the Rome I am now familiar with. The area where I live in Rome is filled with small winding streets that are often bustling with people doing errands and window-shopping. Buildings are painted brightly and offer a more inviting atmosphere. In Naples, construction and plainly painted buildings filled the empty streets. I often wondered while wondering in this area why Naples was constructed in this manner. Was it because the culture of Naples did not value the architecture and vibrant life of buildings like those in Rome?

Even after keeping an open mind when in Naples and the south, I was able to see why people were labeling Naples with such a negative vibe. The amount of trash that was often in the streets and the experiences with the children at the Roma camp as well as Jenny’s mugging all tended to strengthen the stereotypes we had learned and heard about. Usually when I visit a city, I enjoy wandering the streets, especially after dinners to really get an understanding of the culture and atmosphere of where I am. Instead in Naples, I did not feel safe to even leave the hostel. Thinking back to Gribaudi’s words in her writing, it is important to understand that Naples does have crime that also exists in other regions of the world. Although, from my experiences during my visit, the stereotypes and fear that often come along with any discussion of Naples were only reinforced.

Maybe areas such as the ones I describe in Naples do exist in the north. From my experiences exploring the area I have gotten to know in Rome directly around the Campo di Fiori, there are vast differences from what I saw in Naples. It was hard to find the piles of trash and empty dark streets anywhere in Rome. In certain parts of Rome, specifically around Termini, I could find similarities as far as the bland architecture and less friendly atmosphere but nothing as vast and widespread throughout the city as Naples. Even as Charles Richards describes in his piece The New Italians, “Naples is a third world city” (pg 103). From these descriptions, my belief that Naples is unlike those cities from the north is reinforced.

Through my time spent exploring Naples, I began to feel as if I was an outsider. Being a middle class American student, I felt as if I did not belong. In Rome it is common to see school groups exploring the area, where in Naples I did not see anyone my age roaming the streets. Although I tried to dress casually in attempts of not standing out, it was obvious that I did not belong on the streets of Naples. I could even notice a difference in the way our tour guide Alex dressed in Naples compared to in Rome. When he visited Rome to meet our class, he was professionally dressed and it was apparent that he was of a higher status. When we met up with him on the streets of Naples, it was hard to even recognize him. He was wearing a full length jacket and scruffy hat which was a stark difference. It was obvious that I did not know how to dress to fit into the Napoleon society. In the end, I did not get the feeling that blended into the society in Naples. I began to get a better understanding of how immigrants must feel upon arriving to a new country as we had studied in class. This feeling of being an outcast and an outsider are similar feelings both immigrants and myself face.

On the other hand, I was able to see Gianmarco’s viewpoint on Naples. The city was filled with breathtaking views of the Mediterranean, outstanding cuisine, and impressive sights of mount Vesuvius from most parts of town. I believe that Gianmarco and our tour guide Alex, who are passionate about their love for their city, are able to look past the grunge and danger in the area and see Naples for it’s beauty. They grew up in the area and have the knowledge of who and where to avoid in order to avoid this danger. Visitors, who are often responsible for creating these negative stereotypes during their visits, stand out and are often targets of crime. It would be interesting to note changes in the stereotype of Naples if the city were to take a stand to clean up the trash and minimize the violence.

In the end, vast differences in style, people and architecture compared to Rome set up for an experience that definitely opened my eyes to seeing part of Italy not like the stereotypical Italian towns everyone seems to know so well. Although I would not be dying to return to Naples, I was able to appreciate its beauty, cuisine and different culture and architecture. Even with trying to keep and open mind during my visit, I was only able to have these stereotypes and fear reinforced. Although Naples wouldn’t be on my top list of places to visit, I am glad I went for the experience. Like in any city, there are both good and bad things yet in Naples I found that the bad did tend to outweigh the good.

Assignment 4: Open/ Closed Doors in Terms of Immigrant Education

            Education is vital in order to be successful in any society. When the issues of immigrants and language barriers become introduced, differences in education become apparent. Through looking at the way in which Italy has coped with this great influx of immigrants in their education system, it becomes apparent of the doors that are both left open to help them out in addition to the numerous ways in which their government has made it difficult to integrate into society. Gerlmini’s new 30% rule in addition to the lack of programs in schools to help out immigrants definitely closes doors for immigrants. On the other hand, certain centers and language programs set up throughout the city are designed to help immigrants integrate into society. These open and closed doors as far as education for immigrants in Italy are then compared to those doors in the United States. Such programs such as ESL help out children while other programs are not distributed evenly, therefore closing off many opportunities to succeed for immigrants.

For Italian immigrants, it becomes very difficult to receive an adequate education due to the numerous closed doors immigrants are faced with. One in particular is Gerlmini’s new law that prohibits Italian schools from exceeding having 30% foreign students in a class. This law, as discussed by our guest speakers Fedelicia Bianchi and Anna Onorati, greatly restricts certain immigrant groups from having easy access to education. In areas that are high in immigrants, many are forced to commute longer distances to attend a school with a lower percentage of foreign born students in the classroom. This commute deters these students from having an optimal education and only further restricts immigrants from being able to integrate into the Italian society. This new law makes me question the motives behind the Italian government. If the government is trying to make it more difficult for these immigrants to obtain an education, it seems almost as if Italy is only hurting itself by not educating its’ population.

In addition to this new law, Bianchi and Onorati also discussed the lack of resources offered to immigrant children in schools. They talked about how there are programs set up to help immigrant kids who are having difficulty but how these programs are only offered one day a week for a few hours. In order to be successful in school, programs like these must be offered more often in order to really make a difference in integrating immigrants into to Italian society. After hearing this information, it makes me wonder what must be done in school systems in order to develop programs like these more often?

Another reason that the Italian school system is thought of as closed, deals with a lack of motivation to attend school. According to Renato D’Arca’s “Social, Cultural and Material Conditions of Students from developing countries in Italy,” only 19% stated that they were advised to attend university. In his piece he speaks of student’s loss of interest in becoming integrated in Italian social framework as a major issue at hand. In order for education of these immigrant groups to be moving forward, their must be a will and incentive for students to attend these schools. This statistic makes me wonder why so many students are not being advised to attend university? Is it because education is not as valued in Italy as it is in America? At least in the states, it is almost impossible to be successful without higher education. Why is this not the case in Italy?

 In Italy, education for immigrants can often also be viewed as being open. Throughout the city, there are centers set up to help immigrants adapt to the Italian culture. For example, both the St. Paul Refugee Center as well as the school we visited as a class offers language classes. As a part of my service learning at the St. Paul Refugee Center, I often help teach English, Italian and computer skills to the immigrants that are a part of this center. In addition, the school we visited talked about how they offer classes in a variety of different languages mainly for immigrants. These types of centers help acclimate immigrants to the Italian culture as well as help them find a successful job. It would be greatly beneficial to open more centers such as these to help the increasing amount of immigrants in Italy acclimate into society here.

     In the United States, it almost seems as if the educational system provides more open doors for immigrant students. In addition to there being no 30% rule for the classroom make up, there are also programs to help immigrant students learn the class material at a slower pace. Programs such as ESL (English as a Second Language) help teach kids at their own pace in a separate classroom. At least in my school growing up in California, these programs existed everyday and helped kids in a variety of subjects in order to help these immigrant kids stay on the same track as their American classmates. I wonder if Italy could work with these ESL programs to try and devise a way to integrate similar programs everyday in the Italian school system?

   Although it may seem as if the United State’s educational system is more open compared to Italy, the US’s system can also be viewed as a system designed to close doors for many immigrants. Immigrant students are often only provided with a basic education that only allows them to fulfill the low paying jobs once they finish their schooling. They are not provided with as much flexibility as far as courses and programs to help further their education. For example, the public high school I attended, which was in a predominately white region of California, offered a range of honors, advanced placement as well as internship opportunities to help students be successful later in life. A town not to far from me was filled of predominately immigrants from Mexico and Central America. In this town, the high schools do not offer such programs to help their students get ahead. I have always wondered that if the programs that were offered at my high school were moved to the predominately immigrant high school if these immigrants would have greater opportunities as far as college and high paying jobs?

     Overall, it is interesting to compare how different countries take on the issue of educating immigrants. Through comparing both Italy and the US, it becomes apparent of the vast differences there are to approaching this issue around immigrants. It would be interesting to look at the successful educational programs set up in both countries and examine a way that these can be implemented throughout the world to help immigrants. In the end though, it is good to hear that immigrants, at least in Italy, have a high rate of educational attainment. According to Renato D’Arca, 59% of the immigrant population obtains a high school diploma in Italy. It is important to continue to help these successful educational programs exist in order to make sure that the majority of the population is becoming educated. 

          

Blog 3: Interviews in Piazza Vittorio

           Upon arriving to the market at Esquilino and the Piazza Vittorio, it became evident that we had entered an area culturally and ethnically rich and diverse. Here, it seemed hard to even spot an Italian face or and Italian restaurant in the area. It was in this region that my partner Sha and I were able to conduct casual interviews with the immigrants as well as Italians in the area to learn more about their personal stories and views on the issues surrounding immigration.

           Not wanting to come off as intruding their personal beliefs and stories, we decided to take an approach which made us look as quizzical tourists rather than bothersome American students impeding on their lives. We made sure to keep our notebooks hidden and smiles on our faces. Sha and I started off in the indoor market where we would meander around each of the shops, showing interest in many of the goods waiting for an opportunity to try and connect with the vendors. Within the first few stands people were already making the effort and reaching out to talk with us by asking us where we were from and saying a friendly “hello.” This became the perfect opportunity for us to strike up a conversation about their insight on immigration and their personal stories on this topic.

         

            The first two men we spoke with worked at a meat stand in the market. They had kindly approached us speaking English knowing we were American. We took the opportunity and flashed a smile while displaying interest in their meats. We hoped this would result in them feeling more comfortable and in the end open up more about their stories and experiences with Italian immigration. The man at the front that we spoke with was from Bangladesh and about thirty years old. He moved to Italy three years ago with his family. He moved to Italy because he “likes money” and according to him, Italy is a good place to be successful. When we asked about education of the immigrant youth, he stated that his children do not go to school and slyly changed the subject to talking about our program in Rome. We took this as a hint that we dove into too much personal information. This interview got me thinking if our backgrounds had influenced the responses we received. Since we were American, and highly value education, he might have felt judged and wanted us to change subjects. We said “ciao” and moved on to try and interview others.

            Only a few stands later we come across two men from Bangladesh who welcomed us with smiles and offering us fruit. Again, we casually glanced around at their goods and asked them questions about where they were from and their immigration to Italy. With the little English they could speak and our gestures, we were not able to get too far. The only subject we were able to commonly understand was about Barack Obama. After stating that we liked our president, their response entailed machine guns and laughs along with phrases of their native language, which we did not understand. With such a language barrier, the situation quickly turned awkward and we swiftly moved on. With this group, I began to wonder if we were able to speak the same language, what interesting stories they would have shared with us? They seemed like they had an interesting background and were knowledgeable on a lot of subjects but neither of us had the means to communicate with each other.

            After not having too much success in the fruit and meat market area, we decided to move on into the clothing section of the market. Quickly upon entering this section of the market, we came across a twenty four year old man named Robbie who spoke very good English at a clothing stand. After wondering around a little more we decided to go back to his stand and try to strike up conversation with him since he seemed to be able to carry on a conversation in English very well. We started by looking at an “Italy” sweatshirt he was selling until he approached us asking where we were from. We approached him in a friendly manor and did not bring up the topic of our assignment right away in hopes that he would open up more to us as we became friends. Our conversation ranged from talking about where he lives in Italy to his upbringing. He moved to Italy when he was ten from India and learned his English in the Italian school system. It was obvious that he was of a higher class than many of the other merchants since he owned many of the shops around us and spoke of traveling the world being a pilot. He lives an hour away and commutes to the market everyday. After introducing our subject of immigration and Italian youth identity, our subject then shifted to speaking more about immigration. He spoke of his father who emigrated from Germany to Rome many years ago. I later introduced what we were doing as our final project and my interest in looking specifically at how immigrant’s health is affected by immigrating to Italy and their access to healthcare. After trying to explain about the healthcare system presently in place in Italy, it became obvious of his eagerness to want to help in anyway he could. He later offered his Facebook to contact him with any more questions. Compared to many of the other immigrants we had talked to, Robbie seemed to be adapted well to life here in Italy through speaking many languages and through his success in the market. This success makes me wonder what others can do to follow his success and to intertwine so successfully into the Italian culture while also maintaining his Indian identity? After speaking with Robbie, I began to wonder what his economic and family background was and if this was a determining factor that set him apart from the other immigrants that we spoke with?

            We then decided to look for an Italian to ask about immigration and their views on the subject. After not seeing many Italians in the market area, we decided to wander the surrounding streets in search of approaching an Italian. After a long walk we finally decided to approach a middle-aged man and ask him about his opinions on immigration. He stated how he did not approve of the immigrants residing in Italy. When asked to elaborate on his dislike for the immigrants, he just kept repeating “not good, not good” while shaking his head. This man called this area of Rome “Chinatown” due to the high amounts of immigrants. China, Bangladesh as well as the Arabic countries were among the most prevalent immigrants in his eyes. In the past ten to eleven years, he has witnessed a great increase in the numbers of immigrants in this community in Rome. One interesting comment he proposed about these immigrants was how, in his opinion, the immigrants were receiving money from the mafia to buy apartments and set up shops in the area. I later questioned what brought him to this belief. Although his beliefs on this issue of immigration are strong, he reassured me that many of his friends and family felt similarly. I began to wonder if his thoughts were truly widespread beliefs across Rome or even within this neighborhood? In addition I wonder what led him to share this information with us? Maybe it was because we were not immigrants or maybe it was because it was evident we shared the same economic status. Either way, I found it an interesting comment to share with strangers.

            Many of this man’s beliefs followed closely to those beliefs discussed in Grillo and Pratt’s “The Politics of Recognizing Difference.” This piece discussed how Italians were beginning to deliberate the complications, consequences and implications of their own identity as a result of the rush of immigrants into Italy. The Italian man we interviewed believed that this influx of immigrants would result in only complications for himself and other Italians and therefore should not be welcomed into his neighborhood or country. It is important to look into the social, political and economical structure of immigrants that cause this man as well as other Italians to have these negative thoughts about immigrants.

            It was clear upon arriving in Piazza Vittorio that we had been introduced to an area of Rome rich in ethnic diversity. Through our many interviews, we were able to get a better understanding of immigration within Italy from a variety of viewpoints. Hearing immigrant’s as well as Italian’s perspectives on the issue surrounding identity and immigration allows for a more personable experience with these issues. Although we were not able to get deep insight on issues of immigration due to language barriers in addition to us being American, we were still able to take a lot from the experience. I am sure that if we were both fluent in Italian as well as coming from a different background, we would have been able to gain more from our trip. Upon leaving Piazza Vittorio, I was confronted with many questions. What brings so many immigrants to this particular area? Has this area always been full of immigrants or is this a recent phenomenon? These questions will only be answered through conducting more research as well as returning to Piazza Vittorio and asking questions.