Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn, Mariela Salvatore from the Office of Italian Consul General Nicola Faganello, exhibition sponsor Eric Eisenberg, San Pedro luminaries Joe Buscaino, Anthony Pirozzi, Helene Pizzini, Carmela and Gianni Funicello pose with members of the Italian American Museum board Paul Pagnone, Doug Pozzo, John Rotondi, Roger Vitti with curator Marianna Gatto at the opening of "Sunshine and Struggle." (Photo courtesy of Joseph Gatto and Al Fasani.)
Darrell Fusaro of i-Italy surveyed "“Sunshine & Struggle, The Italian Experience In Los Angeles, 1827 – 1927" and read "Los Angeles's Little Italy." He writes: "So many may be very surprised, and if Italian very proud, to discover the origin of present day Los Angeles owes quite a bit to it’s Italian settlers. It may even be more surprising to learn that these settlers came to reside in this area nearly a century before those who came to America by way of Ellis Island."
The success of the Italians in Los Angeles early in Los Angeles’s history was mainly due to the fact that because of the cultural similarities between the Italians and the Mexicans they did not face the discrimination that characterized their experience elsewhere in the country. For example, an Italian settler, Frank Sabichi was President of the Los Angeles City Council in 1874. Much more of this “Largely Unknown History of Italians in Los Angeles” can be discovered at the current exhibition titled, “Sunshine & Struggle, The Italian Experience In Los Angeles, 1827 – 1927.” It is located at 437 West 6th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731. A storefront has been transformed to reflect the early Italian experience in the area. Discovering the little known facts that are jam packed throughout the exhibit is as fascinating as it is surprising. Mariann Gatto, curator of this exhibition and author of, “Los Angele’s Little Italy,” has put together the perfect amount of facts and trivia to satisfy and enlighten the curious.“Sunshine & Struggle, The Italian Experience In Los Angeles, 1827 – 1927" runs until December 31st. For more information, call (323) 422-2668 to confirm hours.
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