I was talking with my dad the other day. He’s a Neapolitan who immigrated in the late 80s, so I don’t really consider myself italian American as I learned everything directly from him. We were talking about the 1946 referendum to determine whether Italy would remain a monarchy or become a republic. The republic won 12m votes to 10m. However, this was because overseas Italians, who were descended from the southerners of the time, weren’t allowed to vote. If they had been allowed to vote Italy would still be a monarchy. Basically the overseas Italians were broadly fascist enablers. Those same Italians are the ancestors of the modern day It*lian *mericans. So technically it is praxis to hate Italian Americans as they are pretty much descended from fascists.

As a side note, according to my dad, they changed the overseas voting law after the demographics shifted. By the time he immigrated the community he immigrated to was first generation Italians who were university educated, which accounts for a lot of our family and family friends. Interesting food for thought.