Sense of Family and Community

This photo is from bleedingexpresso.com.

The Italian-American community in the United States is driven by a sense of family, your biological family and your adopted family (other Italians).  This sense of family and community is very strong. The older generations grew up solely around the community. This can be seen in the article “Growing Up Italian American” on the site ItaliaAmerica.org. The older generations did not think of themselves as American or Italian-American, they were Italians. They grew up in a time where the  culture was much like that in Italy. They lived in a solely Italian community, spoke Italian in the home, and bought their food from multiple markets.  They were immersed in the culture and they did not give it a second thought. The article “Italian-American Culture” on squidoo.com shows how the Italian Culture has influenced American life.

The younger generations have been raised in integrated neighborhoods. The values of the family and community seem to be becoming less of a priority through the generations. With families in the U.S. becoming busier by the moment, the ethnic community has been pushed to the background.

Hartford, Conn. was once a thriving center of Italian culture. Through the decades the community began to spread throughout the surrounding towns. Due to this spread into different communities many different societies and clubs were created. Instead of gathering around a few organizations, the community began to be pulled apart by regions, saints, and sport.

This abundance of societies has led to decreased attendance at events. The Americanization of the generations and the changing priorities of families have also led to this decline.

Many Italians are also angry with the way the younger generations are portraying themselves. TV shows such as “Jersey Shore” portray the younger generations as individuals whose sole concerns are tanning and partying.Teens today buy into the stereotypes of their culture rather than proving them wrong. Whether the community likes it or not the culture has begun to change.

The video below discusses life growing-up in an Italian-American community.

Why this Blog was Created

This blog was created to inform the greater Hartford Italian-American community of events and issues that have arisen within the community.  It seems, through observation that the community is driven mostly by the participation of the older generations. This blog will attempt to inform the younger generations of their culture and attempt to bring discussion on the issue. Why is culture so important to some and not others? Why doesn’t the younger generation seem interested in participating in their culture? What is being done to involve the younger generations? These are questions that will be addressed through this blog.

What societies are most involved in the Italian community in Connecticut? How are they involved with the community as a whole?

The state of Connecticut has a large population of Italians and has many different cultural societies.

Culture is an aspect of society that helps to connect a group of people. It allows one person to relate to others around them who have similar backgrounds, goals, and interests. The Italian culture is a rich one. It encompasses a long line of history, art, food, music, dance, and language. One of the formal definitions of culture is “the integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations.” This is according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary.

NIAF, the National Italian-American Foundation works with the community in all states and works with the national government. They promote Italian culture and events throughout the United States.

There seems to be a need to strengthen the cultural and generational bonds in the Italian community. This blog seeks to show the issues that are present within the community and ways that they can be resolved. Lastly, this blog was created to attempt to push aside the stereotypes associated with being Italian. Italianaware.com discusses how Italians are portrayed by others and the media. The culture is rich and strong and the positive aspects are what should be passed down through the generations.