Was he actually Italian though? As in, speaking Italian, having an Italian passport etc.? Y’all Americans have weird definitions of nationality, just having a foreign sounding last name isn’t really enough…
The word you are looking for is enthnicity. Enthnicity describes the (self-)perceived belonging to a population group. This is of course highly subjective.
There is undeniably perception of grouping in the US based on heritage, where it doesn’t really matter when your ancestors arrived, just from where. So from an American POV it makes sense to call him Italian, because he is in the same perceived group as all the people from Italy.
On the other hand from a European POV it doesn’t really matter, where your great grandparents come from. You are part of the US-Group, so you are American.
This is not an exclusive US Problem, but a general migration problem & it happens everywhere. Comments like yours are the reason, why people from migrated families feel like they are in-between cultures. Instead of writing snarky comments on the internet, just accept that your perception of ethnicity is part of your ethnicity and other people can have other perceptions.
Ever heard a white American try to have the tired-ass what’s your ancestry conversation with a black American descended from slaves? It’s pretty awkward. I hate these conversations and they need to stop.
I get it all the time because I’m 7/8 “white” and my last name is pretty distinctively German, even though it’s been anglicized.
According to Italian law if you have Italian ancestry, you’re Italian. There’s a whole process (with many asterisks and exceptions) in which you can apply to get your Italian passport
When someone from America says they Italian or whatever they aren’t talking about nationality, it’s about ancestry, where your family came from not what county you were born in
No no no no…it’s about what kind of food your mom cooked when you were a kid.
Which makes me…uhhhhhh…clown? I don’t know. She bought a lot of McDonalds.
Dude’s name is Luigi and his last name sounds like a pizza restaurant. That settles it for me, thank you very much.
You joke, but that kind of prejudice is pretty hurtful in day to day life
Buddy, I’m German, I assure you I’ve been subjected to plenty of prejudice myself. Ever seen Die Hard? So flattering (not).
It’s important to remember that the Italians and the Irish were treated as a low rung of American society not all that long ago.
They are legitimate victims of the brunt of American hate.
Is it though? You would be hurt if someone thought you were Italian? You must think pretty poorly of them lol
In America since we came here and took the land from the natives we just assume everyone’s family came from somewhere else at some point in recent history. A lot of families are very proud of their ancestry and talk about it a lot.
