January-December 2010, vol. 1

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“Everything can change, but not the language that wecarry inside us, like a world more exclusive and finalthan one’s mother’s womb”- Italo CalvinoThe Museo Italiano Cultural Centre was officially opened by the Premier John Brumby on SundayOctober 3 rd , 2010.Co.As.It. in collaboration with Museo Italiano celebrated the launch by creating a piazza on FaradayStreet for the day with key performances by artists who have helped carve the new Italian Australianculture.Italian language and culture have become an integral part of many Australian homes. The Italian voice hastraversed across many cultures and it is beyond doubt that Australia has changed as a result of the Italianinfluence. Since the 1850s Italians have migrated to Australia, transforming the landscape and graduallycreating a new cultural identity.The Museo Italiano is geared towards sharing the Italian legacy and exploring the salient challenges andachievements of settling in foreign land. It tells the story of Italian migration, with a special focus on thepost World War 2 years in the district of Carlton.The permanent Museo Italiano exhibition comprises five interconnected sections which address the corecultural, social, economic and political themes relevant to Italian migration to Australia. The interactive andself-explorative installations featured in the Museo’s sections – Departures, Making Lives, Settlement,Interaction and Identity – invite the audience to partake in the contemporary Italian experience.Linking together disparate influences from the homeland in an Australian context, Museo Italiano willperpetuate the spirit of all things Italian.The Museo would not have been possible without the community’s support and involvement.We look forward to your visit.199 Faraday Street, CarltonOpening hours: Tues-Fri 10am-5pm Sat 12noon-5pm03 9349 9000 www.museoitaliano.com.auMuseo Italiano is part of the Lygon Street precinct.Development of the Museo has been funded by the VictorianMulticultural Commission’s Cultural Precincts Enhancement Fund.4 | IHSJ ITALIAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY JOURNAL VOLUME 18 2010
letter to the editorFrom: John ManeschiSubject: Interview with Ivo VellarDear Editor,Thanks for sending me Volume 17 of the Journal, which I haveread cover to cover, again a great selection of articles. Inparticular I would like to commend you on your interview of IvoVellar, because the account has brought out in me a flood ofmemories of what it was like being an Italian in the Australia ofthe 1940s and 50s, the period just after Ivo’s arrival in Australia.My own Carlton period was when I boarded at NewmanCollege 1952 to 1956. I can certainly relate to the racism issuesthat Ivo encountered, the general dismissive, belittling, spiteful,sardonic attitude towards things Italian by the averageAustralian at the time. Your account has rekindled feelings inme I thought forgotten, feelings of anger, frustration, a generalsense of unfairness towards migrants, of homesickness for thepatria – all feelings which I must have bottled up at the time inorder not to upset my family. I can only admire Ivo’sdetermination not to put up with unfair prejudice, and thebruising, probably both moral and physical, that he had toendure by sticking to his principles. There are probably similarmemoirs of Italians of this period, but this one has certainlymade a significant impression on me.My own migratory experience, as you know, was cushioned bythe Italo-Australian situation in which I grew up. Beginning withmy Australian Anglo-Celtic mother, then her sister, her brother,mother, cousins, etc. being all Italophiles by education andinclination, I was spared the raw impact that Ivo had to absorb.My mother’s words to me in the early days of our migrationhere “take no notice of what certain Australians say about Italy,they are ignorant, prejudiced, jealous of another culture, theyhaven’t travelled, they don’t read history...” No derogatoryremark about Italians could ever be voiced in her presence. Iwas fortunate that my Australian relatives had travelled, andunderstood that the Italian contribution to Australia was notjust about spaghetti and O Sole Mio. They appreciated myItalian heritage, my country’s place in the arts, science, music,engineering, architecture. It was my Italian father instead, likeIvo, who had to bear the brunt of the anti-Italian bias in theAustralian workplace, though he also benefited from asupportive attitude on the part of his Australian relatives.Ivo makes interesting points about the evolution ofmulticulturalism in Australia, which I find myself in agreementwith. The trickle of Italian migrants who come to Australia todaywould find only vestigial remains of the old anti-Italian bias. Ihaven’t heard the D word used for many years, I suspect it hasgone out of fashion. Is racism alive in Australia today? I agreewith Ivo that it certainly is, but I am certain that it is not auniquely Australian trait. It seems to me that racism emergeswhenever a previously homogeneous society feels itself underthreat by the arrival of outsiders from different cultures. This isbecause the new arrivals’ habits and ways of thinking do notconform to the ways of the majority, raising uncertainties anddoubts in the minds of the incumbents that they might be“missing out on something”, which doubts they are afraid tovoice.I’ve had heated arguments on this issue with my Italian cousinsin Italy, who deplore the intrusion into Italian society today byAfricans, Chinese, Muslims, the dreaded extra-comunitari –“non sono gente per bene, non c’è da fidarsi, etc.” they grumbleunder their breath. So Italians can be racist too, and we mustaccept racism as part of the human condition. This doesn’tdetract from the very real emotional trauma which Ivoexperienced in his youth, which your interview so lucidlydocuments, and which I hope other older Italians will readabout in the Journal and sympathise with Ivo’s predicament.Ciao, JohnadvertisementItalian Civilian Internees – WW2Loveday Internment Camp,South AustraliaI am conducting postgraduate researchat the University of Melbourne and seekyour participation in an important projectto tell the true story of daily life at theLoveday Internment Camp during WorldWar II as part of our Italian history inAustralia.If you would like further detailsor to participate, please contact:Mia Spizzica0400 200 235 or (03) 9852 4338m.spizzica@pgrad.unimelb.edu.auIHSJ ITALIAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY JOURNAL VOLUME 18 2010 | 5
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January-December 2010, vol. 1

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