Pasquale Giovannone Research Paper

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It is a long-with-standing stereotype that Italians love to gamble. This is true. My great grandfather, Pasquale Giovannone, played the riskiest hand of cards when he immigrated to the United States as an illegal stowaway at the age of thirteen. He forged a life for himself amidst the ever-changing social and political shifts of the early nineteenth century. The legacy he left would later lead to the birth of my father, John Giovannone, in Northern New Jersey in 1962. Pasquale, or “Patsy,” as my father affectionately calls him, was born in 1887 in the village of Arpino in the central Italian province of Frosinone. The frenzy of immigration to the Americas was sweeping the nation and Pasquale was caught up in the fervor. He wanted to go to the United States. This seemed easy enough, considering the millions of Italians pouring into the country’s borders. The only thing he needed was a ticket. Patsy’s parents did not want to leave their life in Arpino, causing a bit of a conundrum for the young boy. So he did the what every other adolescent who has ever been told “no” does. He did it anyway. Stealing away in the night and leaving a fake note …show more content…

He worked hard for every part of life he earned as an Italian-American in the early 20th century. His life would pave the way, quite literally, for millions of Americans, including my father. My father is a proud American who works everyday to sew his own piece of cloth into the fabric of history this nation wears. A famous Italian- American songwriter, Bruce Springsteen, writes, “There’s diamonds in the sidewalks, the gutter’s lined in song.” In a way, he was right. There are riches to be had but only if one chooses to see all of the potential in the settings around himself and put in effort. My great-grandfather knew this and chose to forge his own destiny. A destiny many immigrants strive toward

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