I Have to Get This Off My Chest, Any Italian Who is a Bigot is More of an Asshole Than Anyone Else

[appalachiablue]

67. Just a guess, and sorry to crash in but off hand I'd say Bologna. The city is home to

the oldest university in Europe, early 11th c., has been a prominent intellectual and cultural center for centuries known for its school of painting, tradition of music, opera and theaters, literature and some notable political leaders. I could also be entirely off about the city referenced.

I'm not Italian, but have traveled to Florence and Rome and grew up and went to school in a medium size city with many kids and people whose ancestry was from Britain and Germany, also Italy, Hungary, Lebanon and Syria, others with Jewish, Polish, Irish and Swiss background and a good number of black folks. Nobody even talked about heritage and ethnic issues that I recall, and we got along fine. That was in the late 50s-70s, pre-Reagan when my hometown benefitted from the growth of liberalism in the nation, the prosperity especially for whites, the strong economic base and middle class, very solid educational systems and some fine cultural centers. All in common with a number of places in the the US at the time. But it was a very different era in America then to say the least. Our parents, family and grandparents were also major influences and they mostly held progressive, tolerant views which contributed to the outlook and life direction of my generation and beyond.

This thread raises important and sensitive issues which I find interesting. Usually I keep my head down, especially given my handle, and try to tolerate the long held perceptions, also the ugly truths, the well known decline and growing ignorance of the region that is my home area. No easy feat since I have brain damage from lead and chemical exposure according to many on DU, am inherently backward, prone to violence, bigoted, ignorant and suspicious. Half kidding here!