Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America Chapter #3005

10/12/2026

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Italian immigrants faced severe xenophobia, poverty, and violent discrimination. When Columbus Day eventually became a federal holiday in 1937 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, it served as a powerful statement that Italians officially belonged in America.

The nationwide recognition of the day actually began much earlier. In 1891, eleven Italian Americans were brutally lynched by a mob in New Orleans. To ease the resulting international diplomatic crisis with Italy and pacify the grieving immigrant community, President Benjamin Harrison proclaimed a national celebration of Columbus Day in 1892.

Many families use the day to honor their grandparents and great-grandparents who arrived through Ellis Island with very little, working to build American cities, roads, and infrastructure.

Because of this specific history, many Italian Americans view the holiday as an "Italian American Heritage Day" rather than a strict veneration of Columbus the individual.

05/13/2026

Join us for the 5th Annual Day at the Races! 🏇💲🌭

Saturday, July 25th $65pp
Price includes admission, program, food, beverages and access to our private picnic area.

Get your tickets here: https://share.google/LE2n6rVdCEc3eTSGc

03/24/2026

10/29/2025

09/28/2025

𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗦𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻? Or something entirely their own? It’s a common question that reveals more than it asks.

Legally and geopolitically, Sicily is part of Italy. It has been since unification in 1861.

But historically, culturally, spiritually, well…that’s where things get more nuanced.

Sicily wasn’t merely 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘥 in Italy. It was 𝘢𝘣𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘣𝘦𝘥.

And before that, it was 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘦𝘥 by almost every empire that ever touched the Mediterranean.

The Greeks called it 𝘛𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘢.

The Romans turned it into their imperial province.

The Arabs transformed it into an Islamic jewel of science and agriculture.

The Normans built opulent cathedrals with Arabic muqarnas and Latin inscriptions.

The Spanish ruled it from afar, and the Bourbons kept it poor.

Each era layered its language, cuisine, religion, and architecture onto the island. Some marks were bold, others buried. But none were ever fully lost. You can still find them in recipes, in ruins, and in the rhythm of everyday life.

So when a Sicilian in America says, “𝘐’𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘐𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯, 𝘐’𝘮 𝘚𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯” they’re not being contrarian.

They’re bearing witness.

They’re honoring a legacy that predates the modern Italian state.

A legacy that includes saints and sultans, poets and pirates, rebels and kings.

A legacy that often found itself at odds with the centralized power of Rome, Naples, or Florence.

It’s not about rejecting being Italian. It’s about remembrance.

Sicily has always been a world unto itself.

To say “𝘐’𝘮 𝘚𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯” is to speak from that world…with all its beauty, pain, and defiant pride still intact.

09/06/2025

Take your chance with the dunk tank!

09/06/2025

Thank you to our many volunteers who helped organize this event!