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Italian-American activists held a rally Wednesday in Columbus Circle urging Mayor Bill de Blasio to restore Columbus Day to the school calendar. "Christopher Columbus is here, he's here to stay," attorney Arthur Idola said. "And on behalf of the lawyers, we are going to do everything that the legal system has to offer to make sure Columbus is not f...

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The Italian American One Voice Coalition (“IAOVC”), America’s largest independent Italian American anti-bias organization, is joining with dozens of Italian American organizations at an Italian American Civil Rights press conference to denounce New York City Department of Education’s (“NYC DOE”) elimination of Columbus Day. The event is slated for...

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On April 6 the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations (COPOMIAO) filed a lawsuit in U.S. Federal District Court against Mayor Jim Kenney and the city of Philadelphia for multiple acts of intentional discrimination against the Italian American community. The most unsettling of which was Mayor Kenney’s unilateral Executive O...

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Renewed political debate continues over Christopher Columbus and the explorer’s legacy. Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh is detailing plans to move forward with the removal of the statue at Columbus Circle. Walsh says the city is assembling a task force of Italian-Americans to decide how to respectfully relocate it. “As painful as it’s been at times, it’s...

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A stalemate continues over the fate of the Christopher Columbus statue in Pittsburgh’s Schenley Park. The city’s Art Commission voted to remove the statue because of Columbus’ history of torture and slavery. The Italian Sons and Daughters of America sued to keep the statue, saying the allegations about Columbus aren’t true. They say he is an import...

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A state lawmaker — outraged by the de Blasio administration’s canceling of Columbus Day as a school holiday — is introducing a bill to restore the explorer to the New York City school calendar by rescinding the re-labeling to “Italian Heritage Day/Indigenous Peoples Day.” “It is being drafted. Hopefully ready for submission next week,” said state S...

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The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) stands firmly in opposition to the New York City Department of Education’s decision to eliminate Columbus Day and replace it with Italian Heritage Day/Indigenous People’s Day. This decision, which was arrived at without any community input, effectively pits two communities, both worthy of their own in...

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The fate of the statue of Christopher Columbus that stood in Wooster Square Park is not yet settled. The state Freedom of Information Commission recently held an evidentiary hearing to review a complaint from Italian-American Heritage Group of New Haven LLC, which alleges the Board of Park Commissioners did not include an agenda item notifying the...

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Mayor de Blasio's education department today violated the civil rights of the tens of thousands of Italian American students in New York City. By canceling the celebration of one culture and substituting another, themayor's appointees have pitted group against group. They seek to spread the virus of hatred to destroy understanding and unity. These...

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Maybe they should have explored this idea — or even checked with City Hall — before moving ahead full sail. As backlash over its previously unannounced decision to scrap Columbus Day snowballed Tuesday, the New York City Department of Education later said it would now close schools on Oct. 11 for “Italian Heritage Day/Indigenous People’s Day.” “Cit...

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