Awarded the title of “Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy” by President Sergio Mattarella, Lia Adelfi is president and beating heart of the Dante Alighieri Society of Michigan, which promotes Italian language and culture in the area.In close synergy with the Consulate of Italy in Detroit, the Society promotes a new Italian-ness: with initiatives ranging from the enhancement of the Italian language to the restoration of historical monuments, it works daily to overcome entrenched stereotypes and show a modern and dynamic Italy.This interview is a journey through Italian culture, identity and integration in Detroit, told by the voice of one of the protagonists.
What is the core business of Dante Alighieri Michigan?
“The core business is the promotion of Italian culture and language, following the lines that our parent company asks us to implement, and the enhancement of our culture abroad, supporting and collaborating with local institutions. In our case, we are in close collaboration with the Consulate of Italy in Detroit.”
Speaking of this close collaboration, Consul Allegra Baistrocchi told us that eighty percent of the events the Consulate organizes are done in co-partnership with Dante Michigan. In short, you are closely linked.
“With the Consulate we have always been closely linked, only in the last three years there is a deeper and, if you like, more democratic collaboration: it is visible, it is felt, it is vibrant. Of course, it depends a lot on the current Consul, his participation, the time he devotes not only to the technical and administrative side, but also, and above all, to promoting a different Italy. To achieve better results, we need open and transparent collaboration, like the one we have experienced in recent years. Among other things, a new Convention was signed last year that regulates the relationship between the Farnesina and the Dante Alighieri Society for joint initiatives in the field of promoting and spreading Italian culture and language around the world. The text of the new Convention also provides for periodic meetings to verify the activities carried out and to plan possible joint projects in language and cultural promotion. This agreement, together with the primary mission of the Society, is our driving force.”
From your point of view, so from a cultural perspective, how is the integration of the Italian community in Detroit going?
“There is a new Italian-ness that seeks new adventures and has different perspectives than those of the immigrants who came here in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. So we have two different needs from a cultural and community development point of view: those of Italian Americans and those of the newly immigrated Italians. I agree with Consul Baistrocchi that we absolutely have to engage this new Italianness to reintegrate also the Italian American who, for historical reasons, had to hide and repress their identity. Some problems related to racial issues have recently brought these dynamics back to the surface. We want to promote this new Italian-ness and we want the message to reach Italy as well, because it is fundamental. Here we really propose a different Italy: current, productive, not the stereotypical “spaghetti and mandolin” Italy. I think this is also good for the long-standing Italian-American community, which feels different from the more recently immigrated Italians. We have to be honest and recognize this diversity. An objective diversity is also given by language. Jokingly, we sometimes talk about “Italian-English”-it is obvious that we need to consider this characteristic. Integration is what it is, there is a kind of “cultural confusion.” It is like a cappuccino: there is milk and there is coffee. I think it’s nice and natural today to listen to an older generation Italian American speak in English terms. It was very difficult for them to integrate culturally at a time in history when it was problematic, if not dangerous, to speak Italian or even their own dialect. So it is clear that this integration was complex: people spoke the language of origin only at home. Today, however, we want to promote the Italian language because we are proud to be Italian. We want to enhance our language, which is musical and rich in culture. As Dante says in its ad for the 84th Congress, held in Rome, “Italian, light in the world.” It is a beautiful language and we absolutely try to promote it as best we can, among the older generations, for our students and for the lovers of the Bel Paese.”
Speaking of Dante: One of the last events you promoted and organized together with the Consulate was the restoration of a statue of Dante in Detroit.
“Yes, the restoration of Dante Alighieri’s statue in Belle Isle was one of the most interesting and exciting moments for me. An emotion that starts from far away. When I arrived in the United States, in 2003, walking on Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, I came across the statue of Christopher Columbus, I was surprised. As is well known, lately, because of Native American issues, this statue has been removed and is located elsewhere, not on public display. In 2008, the Consulate suggested that we organize an event to celebrate Dante in Belle Isle, and we wondered why there. We were told that there was a bust of Dante Alighieri in Belle Isle. I must say that we at Dante of Michigan were surprised because we didn’t know about it, so we went to see it: a monument erected in 1927 after years of difficulty, between fundraising, permits and choosing the bust. Since that time, every year we hold a celebration in Belle Isle, in front of that monument, to honor the Supreme Poet. Four years ago I realized that a restoration was needed. After the events that had led to the removal of the Columbus statue, I thought that if we also lost the Dante monument, we would risk losing the “Italian identity” in the territory. I felt it was my duty to restore this monument. The pedestal was falling apart, now deteriorated by frost and ice. The components of the monument, bust, pedestal and base, made in Italy a hundred years ago, were made of Carrara marble and travertine. I contacted a few companies and, fortunately, found one with a century of experience in monument restoration. We immediately started raising funds in the community, then had to stop because of Covid-19. About two years ago, talking with Consul Allegra Baistrocchi, we decided to include the restoration of the monument in the “LoveITDetroit” project. It was also a way to give something back to the city of Detroit: our sharing what the city offers to the Italian community, because we live and produce here, including culturally. We have been very committed and the restoration project has thus been included in the broader context of “LoveITDetroit,” allowing funds to be allocated to this initiative as well. In addition, we asked the Dante Alighieri headquarters in Rome for a contribution through the “Bando Cultura,” because art is also culture, all the more so if it represents a symbol of Italian-ness. To cover the needs of the overall budget, the Dante Alighieri of Michigan contributed from its reserve funds. In this way we were able to finance the project, giving something back to both Detroit and the Italian community residing here, while also honoring the compatriots of a hundred years ago who, despite the difficulties, had managed to erect a statue to Dante Alighieri and one to Christopher Columbus. For all of us it was indeed a very emotional moment.”
At this moment in history do you see a change from the perception of Italians in Detroit?
“The perception of Italians was initially influenced by the image transmitted by Italian Americans, the first Italians to arrive here. This is a historical image linked to a poor Italy, which inevitably originated certain stereotypes, such as the association with “pizza and mandolin,” also born from the informational isolation of the past. This representation of Italian roots depended a lot on them. The problem is that it was difficult for those who came later to propose a different Italy. Continuing to perpetuate the stereotype of pizza, mandolins, convivial dinners and cantatas was, so to speak, too comfortable, but it was also what symbolically represented “their home.” Dante Alighieri was perceived as simply a local club, rather than a worldwide organization dedicated to promoting Italian language and culture abroad. The change began in 2008, when we decided to overturn this mentality. First of all, it was necessary to change the mentality of Italian Americans themselves, because many were still attached to an outdated image of Italy. I remember one incident when I arrived in Detroit that really struck me: talking to a first-generation immigrant, he asked me if I had a water heater in my house. I felt uncomfortable, but this shows how much information was lacking or how little contact there was with the real Italy. Today we are lucky: we have media, newspapers, computers. There was a time when these resources were not available, and it was really difficult to eradicate certain stereotypes. We worked day after day to change this perception, organizing events on different topics: culture, language, music, technology. We wanted to show contemporary Italy, which was struggling to emerge amidst that old image rooted in the community. The events we are organizing with the Consul are achieving extraordinary success. I think we are really changing the status quo. We can already say that we have made great progress.I conclude with the hope that future generations, called upon to continue this journey, will do so while respecting the values that our predecessors passed on to us. Indeed, these values represent our roots and remind us that we are the living, breathing product of our past.”
The article Consiglia (Lia) Adelfi tells us about Michigan’s Dante Alighieri: the promoter of Italian culture in Detroit comes from TheNewyorker.
