Preserving Columbus statue would show we value diversity of thought
I was surprised to see throughout Syracuse many posters with a particularly interesting message containing two demands. The first one was to celebrate diversity; he second, to replace the Columbus statue. But how can we celebrate diversity by removing a preeminent symbol of diversity? The Syracuse Columbus statue was paid for with the donations of...
After Decades of Service to New Yorkers, Fire Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro Announces Retirement
Fire Department of New York (FDNY) Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro today announced his retirement from the FDNY, effective on February 16, 2022. Commissioner Nigro is the fourth longest serving Fire Commissioner in FDNY history, and one of only six individuals to hold every rank in the Department. “Dan and I have had an amazing relationship over our l...
The New York City Fire Department is mourning the loss of Firefighter Christopher P. Viviano
The New York City Foire Department is mourning the loss of Firefighter Christopher P. Viviano, 53, from COVID-19. Firefighter Viviano was a 22-year veteran of the Department. He joined the FDNY in August 1999 and was assigned to Ladder Company 157 in Brooklyn. In his outstanding career he was cited once for bravery. “Firefighter Viviano is the 16th...
NYC’s Little Italy kidnapping case leads to bigger mystery
Giuseppe Varotta, 5, disappeared on May 24, 1921. Six days later, a woman with a pleasant face and two suitcases arrived at his family’s tenement home on E. 13th St. in Little Italy. Antoinette Varotta, the missing boy’s mother, told neighbors that the woman was a cousin who had come all the way from Detroit to help with cooking, cleaning and carin...
Mayor Adams Appoints Highly Qualified Italian Americans To Serve in Leadership Positions
In October of 2020, when few elected leaders were willing to speak out, mayoral candidate and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams responded without hesitation to this question from the moderator of the city’s first candidates night forum hosted by the Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club. “Are you in favor of removing the statue of Christopher Colum...
Reading of the Names
On January 27th, between 9:00 am and 2:00 pm, the Consulate General of Italy in New York will host the ceremony of the reading of the names of the Jews deported from Italy and the Italian territories. The event is held in observance of International Holocaust Remembrance Day or Giorno della Memoria. The public is invited to take part in the reading...
My View: Grandma Mim’s love lit up South Buffalo
There are key moments in life you remember vividly. One was a cold day in December 1972 when I was pulled out of a high school assembly with the sad news that my beloved Grandma Nicotera had died. I still ache while recalling this and mourn her loss some 50 years later. A traditional old-fashioned, several days’ wake and funeral Mass followed. They...
Maria Lisella reads new and published poems
I went to Maria Lisella’s apartment in Queens, a walk from the train, the elevated N. She thoughtfully had prepared a meal for me, soup, bread, cheese, grilled vegetables. Her cooking like her poetry takes what is everyday and elevates it to an exceptionally rare place, the extraordinary—my that’s good!—and it’s universal too, meant just for you. B...
Section of Troy street to be renamed for Little Italy advocate
The city will dedicate a section of Hill Street to the memory of Michael A. Esposito, beloved resident, historian and neighborhood leader in Troy’s Little Italy neighborhood who died last month, Mayor Patrick Madden said. Hill Street between Liberty and Washington Streets will be dedicated as “Esposito Way” in recognition of his life and contributi...
Commemorating International Holocaust Remembrance Day: Screening of "Our Hebrews"
Tuesday, Jan. 25 • 7 pm EDT. Screening of "Our Hebrews". Followed by a discussion. Casa Belvedere, 79 Howard Ave., Staten Island, NY 10301. Two options: In-person or via Zoom (Links to view the documentary and to join the Zoom discussion will be sent upon registration). Presented in partnership with Wagner College Holocaust Center. Proof of vaccina...
Magazzino Italian Art Is Expanding in the Hudson Valley
Magazzino Italian Art has quickly emerged as a steadfast champion of postwar and contemporary Italian art in the United States. Since Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu co-founded the museum in 2017, it has already outgrown its warehouse-like 20,000-square-foot building designed by Miguel Quismondo in the Hudson Valley. With sights set toward the futur...
Monsignor Ferdinando Berardi, West Brighton pastor, dies at 71
Msgr. Ferdinando Berardi, the pastor of Blessed Sacrament R.C. Church in West Brighton, has died. He was 71. “It is with a very heavy heart that I share with our parish family that Msgr. Ferdinando Berardi died peacefully in his sleep,’' the Rev. Frank Lanzaderas wrote in an email to parishioners on Tuesday. “Please keep his family and our parish i...