Posted on 11/05/2016 5:07:32 PM PDT by nickcarraway
The Italian Ambassador to the UK has intervened after parents complained about the distinction made between Italy, Sicily and Naples in school district questionnaires.
When selecting their ethnicity from a drop-down menu on school district websites, Italians in the UK faced a surprising choice. They were asked to define themselves as either 'Italian', 'Italian - Sicilian', 'Italian - Neapolitan' or 'Italian - Other'.
Complaints initially came from parents in Bradford, north England, but it became clear this was not an isolated case, and that several school districts in England and Wales differentiated between northern and southern Italians.
The Italian Embassy "intervened, requesting the immediate removal of this categorization", it said on its official Facebook page on Tuesday evening.
It also found time to give the UK authorities a quick Italian history lesson, reminding them: "Italy is a unified country, since March 17th, 1861."
Ambassador Pasquale Terracciano told Ansa the choice was a "local initiative" and that rather than being discriminatory, the three options were probably motivated by a desire to identify any "non-existent linguistic needs".
He added however that "the road to hell is paved with good intentions".
Italy and Brexit
The incident comes at an important moment for Italian-British relations, after the UK voted to leave the European Union in June, leaving the thousands of Italians who study and work in the UK with an uncertain future. The vote was particularly bad news for Italian youngsters, many of whom move to the UK where they can often find better employment opportunities..
While UK Prime Minister Theresa May has said she "expects" to be able to guarantee the rights of Italians living in the UK, no promises have been made.
Furthermore, the shock of the 'No' vote appears to have made PM Matteo Renzi about his own upcoming referendum on December 4th.
Although Italy's referendum is about constitutional reforms, it is feared that the wider consequences of a win for the 'No' camp could include a boost for the populist Five Star Movement, who want Italy to hold its own EU referendum.
I wouldn’t have even gotten as far as “Italian.” I always look for the “other” designation or if I get to write something in it’s usually Phoenician or Mongolian.
when i was in high school (70’s) u did not refer to the italian kids as sicilian unless u wanted a fight.
“To identify any nonexistent linguistic needs.”
Must be that dry British humor.
Some administrator is afraid of waking up with a horse’s head in the bed.
My Sicilian born maternal grandfather heard me tell a friend I was half Italian. He cuffed me across the ears and told me we were Sicilians—not Italians. He considered Italians to be low-life people, particularly those from Naples.
My father in law was Sicilian. My mother in law was Calabrese. Of course, being old Italian, he always considered his wife as “stupid”. You cook, clean, wash my clothes and shut your mouth. Horrible to watch.
Sicilians are like Mexicans of Italy from what I know from the idiosyncrasies within Italian nationalism.
There is a difference!
Government is all about identifying non-existent needs.
Yep. My husband is Sicilian. Those are the only REAL Italians. People from Naples ("Nablidon" - Neapolitans) are "thick-headed."
Of course, he is only joking when he says this.
Sort of.
Where do ethnic Carthaginians fit in to this?
Because it is perfectly fine to go in against a Neapolitan when death is on the line.
yeah i remember 1 particular beef, with the “Sicilian” getting po’d and asked “you calling me a n!@@er?” (sorry to all, but that is what he said)
“Never go in against a Sicilian when DEATH is on the line! HAHAHAHAHA!” / Princess Bride
my dad was old world European and he was exactly like that!
I couldn’t figure out why my mom allowed that. and he had 5 daughters so he was surrounded by stupid!!
Don’t miss him at all.
Those school admins are ignorant, anyway. Naples is a city, not a region. To be consistent, they should further subdivide “Sicilian” into Palermitan, Catanese, Messinian, Siracusan, etc.
All 4 of my grandparents were from Sicily. The family went bananas when my uncle married a woman whose family was from Naples.
Our local CO-OP used to sell dog food with a Boxer dog with boxing gloves on the sack. GRIMALDI’S DOG FOOD! DAGO FOR GRIMALDI’S! WOPPING TO PLEASE!
I also wonder what they ask people from the Indian subcontinent: Punjabi, Rajahstani, Bengalese, Maharat, Gujarati, and a hundred other choices?
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