Dear friends,

What a January! Divided between Italy, Florida and California, our January has been full of beautiful things and people.

First, the new yearbook of We the Italians is available, with the 23 interviews (in Italian and English) published during 2022. You can find a preview and buy a copy here. In 2023, we interviewed 20 people, friends of We the Italians who gave us 20 different views on 17 different topics of the relationship between Italy and the United States.

These are the topics you will find in this yearbook: The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution; the Italian Enclaves Historical Society; the Italian Cultural Society in Sacramento, CA; the Italian American Future Leaders; the National Museum of Italian Emigration in Genoa, Italy; Italian astrophysical excellence at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center; the North End Historical Society in Boston, MA; the Duquesne University Study Abroad program in Rome, Italy; the exhibition in New York of Carabinieri’s Forestry, Environmental and Agribusiness Units; the offer aimed at Italian American students at UniCamillus University in Rome, Italy; the NOIA - Northern Ohio Italian American Foundation in Cleveland, OH; the Italian Mass Project of New York, NY; the book "Il Design e l’invenzione del Made in Italy"; the book "Beyond DiMaggio: Italian Americans in Baseball"; Italy in San Diego, CA; the Italian Educational & Cultural Center/Center for the Arts at Casa Colombo in Jersey City, NJ; the Toscana USA Association in Florence, Italy.

In 2023, we interviewed eleven men and nine women in seventeen interviews. Eight of our interviewees live in Italy, twelve in the United States. They all share a love for Italy and the United States.

Again this year, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, I had the pleasure and privilege of mentoring the many young people who participated in the second Italian American Future Leaders. At no other event do I learn so much about the future of the Italian American community, from young people who come from all over the United States. They are the ruling class of the near future, who at these conferences establish a bond that they will carry for a lifetime. My next goal is to be able to transmit to Italian institutions the enthusiasm, the passion and the energy of these future leaders.

In Los Angeles, California, I had the opportunity to attend two very interesting events. In the Little Italy of Los Angeles, in San Pedro, accompanied by my friend and We the Italians Ambassador Mariella Salvatori, I met an effervescent Italian-American community that welcomed me with great warmth, and enjoyed the description of We the Italians and our activities, and the presentation of the Yearbook of 2023. Many thanks to the organizers and participants who told me how much Italy is loved even in San Pedro, at the southern tip of Los Angeles.

Finally, it was an honor to participate in the first annual event for the ‘Russo Brothers Italian American Filmmaker Forum’, honoring the Italian American Louis D’Esposito, Co-President of Marvel Studios with the inaugural “Renaissance Award”. Together with several friends from the Conference of Presidents of the Major Italian American Organizations and with the Italian Consul General in Los Angeles Raffaella Valentini, we celebrated the great Anthony and Joe Russo and Louis D’Esposito, all very proud Italians. It was amazing to see how Hollywood awards the Italian talent, and the best is yet to come, thanks to the Russo Brothers Italian American Filmmaker Forum that will host an annual filmmaker fellowship program in collaboration with the Italian Sons and Daughters of America! 

Once again, let me remember our virtual store, the perfect place where to buy gifts for your family, your friends and – why not – for yourself! You can find more than 20 products in different colors: t-shirts, tank tops, hoodies, onesies, mugs, notebooks, pillows, totes, tapestries, pins, laptop and smartphone cases, magnets, stickers, masks. Buy We the Italians!

It’s all for now. Please stay safe and take care, and enjoy our magazine and our contents on our website. The future’s so bright, we gotta wear shades. A big Italian hug from Rome!