October in San Francisco has now a different feeling: the local Board of Supervisors just unanimously approved Supervisor Catherine Stefani’s resolution recognizing October as Italian American Heritage Month.
The announcement took place a few days before the 151st edition of the Italian Heritage Parade, when 150,000 people from all over California gathered around the North Beach neighborhood to honor Italians and Italian-Americans in the Bay. San Francisco joins now the cities of Los Angeles, Boston, and others in this monthly celebration of Italian culture, traditions, and history.
The 2019 Parade saw former San Francisco Fire Department Chief Joanne Hayes-White and San Francisco Giants pitcher Dave Dravecky serving as parade Grand Marshals. Mr Hayes-White was sworn in as Chief of the San Francisco Fire Department, the largest urban fire Department in the world with a female Chief, former Mayor and current Governor of California, Gavin Newsom. Mr Dravecky, of Italian descent, named an All-Star in 1983, played for nine seasons in Major League Baseball. After his career ended early due to cancer, he recovered from arm surgery and began a new career as a motivational speaker.
As every year, the parade began soon after midday at the foot of Jefferson and Stockton Streets in Fisherman’s Wharf and ended a two hours later in Washington Square in front of Sts. Peter and Paul Church. Italian and Italian-American dignitaries, music, performances, floats and representatives of Italian and Italian-American organizations and businesses either walked or rode a car or a bicycle, and waved at the crowd.
San Franciscans The first parade ever took place in 1868 in San Francisco’s downtown, featuring the bands and marching units of Italian fraternal organizations, including the Garibaldi Guard, Swiss Guards and Lafayette Guards. Throughout the years, it has remained a legacy for the Italian communities in the Bay Area. The Italian Heritage Parade is the city’s oldest civic event. Diving into its historical origins, there was a time in which thousands of Italian immigrants found themselves without the riches they had anticipated, whereas many others were destitute and in need of assistance. That’s why Nicola Larco, the wealthiest member of the Italian Colony of San Francisco, wanted to provide some relief by founding La Società Italiana di Mutua Beneficenza. That was the first and largest mutual benefit society in San Francisco; today, it is oldest Italian organization in the United States.
After he retired from La Società Italiana di Mutua Beneficenza a decade later, Mr Larco took his next step by launching the First Columbus Day Celebration. Italian-Americans gathered in San Francisco to hold a parade and honor their accomplishments and remember Christopher Columbus.
The handcrafted floats bring together San Francisco Bay Area’s business and community groups, as well as Italian organizations and not Italian-Americans, local high school Italian clubs, and marching bands. This year’s parade also celebrated the Columbus Day Bazaar Cent’ Anni, with a focus on the neighborhood’s heritage featuring iconic American, Italian, and Asian foods, and Carnival games and activities.
One of the parade’s focal points is for sure Queen Isabella and her Court, outstanding Italian-American young women who represent the ideals of the community for an entire year. Hard work, family and religion, and a love of life are what a panel of judges look for when it comes to choosing Queen Isabella. Also being a member of the court is more than an opportunity to show their own Italian pride. It is a terrific opportunity to celebrate the achievements of Italian-Americans in the community and helps educate others about the multi-faceted Italian culture. All members must represent the ideals of the Italian-American community: hard work, the importance of family and faith, and a love of life. That’s why the selection process is more complex than what imagined: the Court of Queen Isabella is chosen through an interview consisting of a panel of judges looking for generosity, community involvement, speaking skills, and a commitment to their Italian heritage. The members of the Court serve for one year and participate in many events representing their Italian culture.
In addition to the celebration, during the Grand Ball & Banquet at the Westin Hotel, Italian Consul General Lorenzo Ortona announced that the Italian President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, will be in the Bay Area on October 17th and 18th. The event marks an important moment for the Italian community in the Bay: we need to go back to 1982 to see the Italian Head of State visiting San Francisco and it was when President Sandro Pertini was warmly received by about 500 well-wishers at San Francisco City Hall where Mayor Dianne Feinstein awarded him the key to the city and a declaration proclaiming March 27-29 “President Pertini Day.” On Friday, President Mattarella will be at the Innovation Forum Italy-US at Stanford University, followed by a meeting with Mayor London Breed as well as a ceremony with the Italian community.
If you wish to continue honoring Italian culture, an exhibition with five artists kicked off at the Museo Italo-Americano at the beginning of the month. The exhibit features paintings, sketches, and photographs by five local artists: Sofia Carmi, Art De Fabio, Robert La Rocca, Tito Patri and Carlos Pillado.
Sofia Carmi, a Jerusalem born, with Italian roots on the paternal side, worked the “ Mind Maps ” series, speaking to various investigations of fantasy and mind travel. The artist creates art from vivid memories that interpret and investigate the outer world and diffuse it with her inner world of ideas.
Art Defabio is 100% Italian, with grandparents on both sides of his family having been born in the Molise region of Italy. Faces and Places of Umbria represents a reflection on the emotions and soul of the beautiful region of Umbria, considered the “Green Heart of Italy,” a region rich in agriculture and natural beauty, as well as traditions and families that span many generations. Tito Patri, a landscape architect and planner for over sixty years, taught and lectured in the US and Germany as well as estate planning in Umbria, Italy. His “ Bozzetti Italiani ” are at once unabashedly nostalgic and informative, illustrating the visually comfortable imposition of human systems (e.g. agriculture) on the landscape.
Carlos Pillado, Italian on his maternal side, calls his experience Soul Painting. While painting, the artist experiences an intense desire to manifest himself. As a consequence, the world in which he lives takes over, becoming the minimum requirement of his existence, its only purpose and hope.
Robert La Rocca was born in 1938 and was raised in the North Beach district of San Francisco. Beyond the Edge is the result of Robert’s past design experiences of fountain, plaza, and urban design, a strong geometric design driving his creative process. He explores the space around the canvas and engages the entire wall area as part of the composition.
The exhibit will be at the Museo Italo-Americano until February 2020. For more info, visit https://museoitaloamericano.org/5-artisti/
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