In front of the front door of the museum, the words “Columbus=Mussolini=Rizzo=Trump=Fascism” were spray-painted in white spray paint, along with a message to “end Columbus Day” and other graffiti.
Representatives from East Passyunk’s History of Italian Immigration Museum and members from the South Philadelphia Italian community were saddened last week to wake up to news of anti-Christopher Columbus vandalism spray-painted on the memorial sidewalk in front of the museum.
In front of the front door of the museum, the words “Columbus=Mussolini=Rizzo=Trump=Fascism” were spray-painted in white spray paint, along with a message to “end Columbus Day” and other graffiti.
“I am saddened to see such a despicable action against a museum” says Marc Virga, president of Filitalia International, a nonprofit organization founded to promote and preserve the Italian heritage, language and customs throughout the world. “Our organization exists to defend and preserve the Italian heritage and culture by encouraging everyone to learn the Italian language. We are committed in the area and support local schools with our humanitarian programs and several children every year through our scholarships.”
“It is a shame to vandalize this museum, which has been built by the efforts and contributions of all Italian-Americans. We are here to celebrate our immigration journey and share our heritage with people of all backgrounds.” says Marco Circelli, Filitalia International executive director.
As of last Tuesday afternoon, a “kind volunteer” washed off the spray paint, according to Circelli, who noted he was overwhelmed by community support.
“That’s a great experience I had in this community because we were able to get a lot of support from the neighborhood,” he said. “It confirms to me that South Philadelphia is a great neighborhood. Two people who stopped by wanted to volunteer at the museum because they felt connected to this.”
Local resident Frank Criniti, who is an Italian native who came to Philadelphia when he was 6 years old in 1958, was especially bothered by the vandalism. He called the act “despicable.”
“This isn’t about Christopher Columbus,” he said. “It might be to [the vandals], but to the Italians it’s about celebrating our heritage.”
“I’m outraged,” said another South Philadelphia resident of Italian descent, Gloria Endres. “This is private property and it has nothing to do with any historical any kind of things that are an evil nature.”
Endres called the offense a “hate crime.”
“They’re not just denigrating Columbus, they’re denigrating Italian-Americans,” she said. “This museum is about immigration, which enriched this country.”
Circelli said that according to surveillance footage, the vandalism took place at about 4:35 a.m. on Columbus Day morning.
