Cari amici ~

How blessed are we as Americans to be alive to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence and the birth of our great nation. America, more specifically the USA, is sometimes called "the American Experiment" because of the unique nature of American representation, the three separate but equal branches of government, and the focus on and protection of the inalienable rights of American citizens.

We know that well before the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Italians contributed significantly to the European discovery, naming, and founding of what became the United States. Of course, many of us were taught about Christopher Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci, and Giovanni da Verrazzano. But what of Enrico Tonti, Eusebio Kino, and even John Cabot (Giovanni Caboto), who established viable transatlantic routes and who aided in mapping and settling parts of North America?

Leading up to the signing of the Declaration, Italians and people of Italian descent played roles in the American Revolution and the early republic (ironically before Italy became a unified nation). Perhaps one of the most profound contributors was Philip Mazzei, a Tuscan physician, merchant, an Enlightenment thinker, and a close friend and neighbor of Thomas Jefferson in Virginia.

President John F. Kennedy, in his 1958 book A Nation of Immigrants, asserted that Philip Mazzei influenced the drafting of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, writing: [The great doctrine "All men are created equal" incorporated into the Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson, was paraphrased from the writing of Philip Mazzei, an Italian-born patriot and pamphleteer, who was a close friend of Jefferson… This phrase appears in Italian in Mazzei's own hand, written in Italian, several years prior to the writing of the Declaration of Independence. Mazzei and Jefferson often exchanged ideas about true liberty and freedom.]

Philip Mazzei transcended the ideas of freedom, as he also served in the Virginia militia and influenced revolutionary thought alongside figures like Thomas Paine. Further, it is no accident that Jefferson called his Virginia home, Monticello. Jefferson designed the main house using neoclassical design principles pioneered by Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio, whose palatial designs can be seen in the U.S. Capitol and Harvard University, among other places. Italian political and philosophical traditions, from ancient Rome to Enlightenment thinkers like Cesare Beccaria (On Crimes and Punishments) and Gaetano Filangieri (The Science of Legislation), influenced the Founding Fathers' ideas on republicanism, law, and liberty.

After the Revolution and well into the 1800s, smaller numbers of Italians settled in the U.S. (e.g., artists, musicians, and professionals). Among them was Constantino Brumidi, who painted the Brumidi Corridors (vaulted, ornately decorated corridors on the first floor of the Senate wing), the fresco Apotheosis of Washington, and half of the Frieze of American History, all in the U.S. Capitol (he died in 1880 after falling from scaffolding while working on the "William Penn and the Indians" panel). Filippo Costaggini was commissioned to complete the remaining scenes using Brumidi's sketches, finishing the Frieze in 1889.

Of course, many of our ancestors came with the major waves of Italian immigration from the late 1800s through the early 20th century, bringing with them a variety and diversity of talents and skills, including a nonpareil industriousness. Combined with their hunger for freedom and the opportunity to thrive in that freedom, Italian immigrants and their descendants helped build America literally and figuratively while existing productively at various levels of society. They provided essential labor for railroads, mines, factories, dams, tunnels, and much of our major urban infrastructure, including New York and other industrial centers.

In science and innovation, Antonio Meucci developed an early precursor to the telephone. Enrico Fermi, a Nobel laureate, led key work on the first controlled nuclear chain reaction and the Manhattan Project. Broader impacts include military service, business, politics (including Fiorello La Guardia), arts, sports, and philanthropy. Mother Cabrini founded schools, hospitals, and orphanages for immigrants. Like many of you, members of my own family served proudly in the U.S. Military. At sixteen, my paternal grandfather, Dominic, enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving in the last active mounted horse cavalry during World War I, where he fought in three major battles. Two of my uncles, including my Godfather, later served during both the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

Throughout our nation's history, Italian Americans have enriched American culture through family values, faith, food, labor, business, public service, and countless contributions across every profession, while overcoming early discrimination and economic hardship with perseverance and determination.

Looking forward, during the next 250 years, the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America will continue working to preserve our rich Italian heritage for our children, grandchildren, and future generations. May they celebrate future milestones remembering the inseparable bond between their Italian heritage and their American heritage, and the sacrifices and accomplishments of those who came before them.

God bless America and the American experiment.