Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Delivers Remarks at Italian Heritage Ceremony

October 8, 2015

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Grazie mille, Chirlane. 

[Laughter]

Benvenuti paesani –

[Applause]

It is so wonderful to have you all here in this extraordinary place. Let’s thank everyone at this museum who made possible tonight. Give them all a round of applause.

[Applause] 

And I have to tell you that I am blessed, because as you could hear a moment ago, my wife, even though she is not privileged to be Italian, she is the next best thing – a true Italophile – someone who loves everything about the Italian language, the Italian culture. And if you need proof – my dear friends, if you need proof, she was as enthusiastic as I was to name our children Chiara and Dante. 

[Applause]

Now, I have to tell you, our heritage means so much to us. And this is a time to really appreciate the impact that Italy has had in this world, that Italian-Americans have had, and the Italian diaspora in general, because, remember, we are everywhere. You go all around the world – go to Australia, you’ll find Italians. Go all around and Italians – 

Unknown: [inaudible] 

Mayor: Carrol Gardens, that’s right [inaudible] you’ll find Italians there too.

[Laugher]

But – you’ll find [inaudible] there.

[Laughter]

But these last few weeks we got to feel something very special, because even though his nationality is Argentinian, his heritage is Italian. And I remind you, the first words the Pope ever said as Pope to the entire world were buona sera. And so, we in this city – we had his Holiness in our midst and you could feel something different. This extraordinary man, this visionary, this moral voice in someone that I don’t think we’ve ever seen the likes of before – someone who’s calling us all to something better in the midst of the most modern, the most rapid, technologically charged world. Here comes this clarion voice of good and inclusion, calling on us to protect our earth and to love each other. I don’t know what could possibly give me more pride in my Italian heritage than what Pope Francis is doing, and he was here with us. Wasn’t that amazing?

[Applause]

In Italy, they call – you know, in the newspapers – they call him Bergoglio, like he’s just another Italian. But here, we appreciate that his Italian heritage gave him so much of that humanity, that humanism, that sense of reaching out to all. And so, it’s a very proud moment for all of us who honor our heritage, and it’s a reminder – and I had a few – just very few moments to speak with Pope Francis, and I chose to use those moments doing my best I could Italian because I wanted it to be a more personal connection than to speak through an interpreter. But I told him that he was in the greatest and the ultimate city of immigrants. And I told him that what he was doing and saying meant so much to immigrants all over the world, because, remember, here is a child of immigrants himself, speaking about how we have to value and respect people across all boundaries. And he is speaking from his own experience as well. So, it’s an amazing moment in history, and one that I think is inspiring to so many of us to do even more, to reach even farther. 

Let me take a moment to thank so many good people who are here. I’m being handed even more good people to thank.

[Laughter]

First of all, our masters of ceremony – I want to thank him, and everyone at the Columbus Citizens Foundation for their support. Let’s thank Louis Tallarini.

[Applause]

Let’s thank the dynamic, Chiara Civello, que brava.

[Applause]

The Italian government is here, and we are better for it. Let’s thank Consul General Natalia Quintavalle, and Deputy Consul General Roberto Frangione. 

[Applause]

I want to thank some of the people in our administration, but, first, a special thank you. You know, great leaders make us proud, and for a long time in this city we had a City Council speaker that for any Italian-American was a source of great pride because he did so much good. And his heart is good in so many ways to this day, playing such a great role in this city. Council Speaker Peter Vallone Sr. – let’s thank him. 

[Applause]

Now, when it is Italian Heritage Night, many members of my administration want to be here. And what unites them is that many of them are of Italian heritage – the rest of them wish they were.

[Laughter]

Some of them, like Tony Shorris, wanted to be Italian so much that he married an Italian. Our first deputy mayor, Tony Shorris, thank you.

[Applause] 

One of our most distinguished Italians in the administration who spends every chance he can to go to – every chance he can he goes to Venice because he loves it so much – Dan Nigro, our extraordinary fire commissioner.

[Applause]

I’m calling out the Italians first, so no one else take offense here. Joe Ponte, who is our extraordinary commissioner of the Department of Corrections. 

[Applause]

Well, he’s also Portuguese, but we’ll call him Italian tonight. This name you know – he happens to be one of us – our city legislative affairs director, Jon Paul Lupo. 

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Italian]

[Applause]

And our commissioner for the department of aging, Donna Corrado. 

[Applause] 

And now, for the wannabes –

[Laughter]

– our community affairs commissioner, Marco Carrion; our international affairs commissioner, Penny Abeywardena; our commissioner for design and construction, Feniosky Pena-Mora; and our commissioner for veterans affairs, Loree Sutton. Let’s thanks all of them.

[Applause]

And very importantly, given where we are – our acting commissioner for the Department of Cultural Affairs, Eddie Torres. Thank you for all your help this evening.

[Applause]

The – amongst elected officials here tonight, I’m going to say the ones I know. If others show up, we will call them out – State Senator Liz Krueger; City Councilman Vinnie Gentile; and I think Assembly Phil Goldfeder is here.

And again – a thank you to the Metropolitan Museum; a thank you to Columbus Citizens Foundation; and to my very dear friend who helped us conceptualize this amazing setting. Many of you know him – I deny any knowledge of him – John Calvelli, executive vice president of the Wildlife Conservation Society. 

[Applause]

That’s an inside joke. Now, let me tell you that I have had the most tremendous honor, and Chirlane and I, we’ve experienced our connection in Italy so deeply because, you know, I think everyone knows in Italy, there’s a feeling for New York City that’s absolutely amazing. How many of you have seen Brooklyn Chewing Gum for example? Okay?

[Laughter]

So, there is – people across Italy – maybe it’s because so many of our immigrants who came from Italy came here, or came through here – there’s a sense new York being a direct deep, deep connection in Italy. So when we traveled together last year, or when we’ve gone separately, the warmth and the embrace is extraordinary, but it also has been amazing for us because we’ve gotten to meet so many great leaders in Italy, so many people are doing so much in Italy.

Our dear friends that we’ve met, mayors of great cities of Italy, like Dario Nardella in Florence, and Ignazio Marino in Rome, and Luigi de Magistris, in Naples, are inspiring to us, and the friendship that we’ve built with these leaders, because they’re doing the same things that we’re trying to do here. They’re trying to include everyone, they’re trying to address inequality in an uplifting way. They also – every city in Italy now has communities of people from all around the world. So, people’s experiences are becoming so much in common. And, we, every time we go to Italy, get re-energized.

Now, if you listen to Italians, they always have something to tell you is wrong with their country. 

[Laughter]

But, for we who visit, it is so obvious that we have so much to be proud of. And it plays out in this country – the reality of the United States of America, and certainly the reality of New York City, so imprinted with Italian culture, so imprinted with the sensibilities of the Italian people. This city could not be what it is today if it weren’t for what Italian-Americans did for it. That is a fact.

[Applause]

And, you know, you can look around this beautiful museum, and you can think about the contributions that Italy has made to the world. You can see the Caravaggios, and the Raphaels, and the Canalettos. You can see all the amazing art and culture, and all the thinking that emerged out of Italy that frames modern life today. But at the same time, remember the people’s names we never got to know – the people who built this city brick by brick, stone by stone. The working people who had such strong values – they may not be famous, but they deserve just as much respect and renown as those great artists. And we are their children, and grandchildren, and great grandchildren. And look what this extraordinary city has allowed all of us to do. So there’s so much to celebrate tonight. 

I will conclude by saying I am very, very proud of the fact that because I had someone who shared my devotion to our heritage, and not only did the names go to Chiara and Dante, but they love Italy too. And so much so, Chiara last year – she’s at Santa Clara University, a wonderful Jesuit college in California – and last year, she lived in a dorm called Casa Italiana, so she’s carrying it on. And Dante de Blasio, who will list for you in order of priority and preference, which Roman emperors were greatest – he’ll go down the whole list for you because he knows and appreciates what Rome did that we still feel today. But Dante de Blasio is using his time at Yale University to study Italian this semester, and carrying on our heritage.

[Applause]

So, since I have validated to you that our family believes in it, I can say one thing – I have only one ask of you this evening, I know I am preaching to the converted, but I want to say it with all my heart, and I know our friends at the consulate feel the same way. Take every opportunity to encourage the next generation to learn the language, and to celebrate the culture, maintaining the language, and maintaining the connection – it doesn’t matter whether your ancestors are two or three or even four generations away, we have something precious, and we have to keep it, and we have that opportunity to pass it along.

So, buona festa a tutti, grazie tanto! Buona sera!