Perhaps the oldest, most prevalent, and most detrimental stereotype of Italian-Americans is that of the mob stereotype. This brings me to The Godfather trilogy, one of the most infamous series in film. The Corleone family represents three prominent Italian stereotypes: family, food, and violence. As a family, they serve as a tight knit group, with the men working for the family business and the women fulfilling their duties as mothers and housewives. Food, particularly Spaghetti, Lasagna, and other typically Italian cuisine frames important scenes. And lastly, the tough and formidable men in the film are continually involved in organized crime. My research is still in the works of course, but I've found a lot of information about the roots of this inherently criminal stereotype, that Americans actually associated Italians with even before they made their journey to Ellis Island during the turn of the 20th century.
For my interview, I plan to ask my second Uncle, Louie (short for the Luigi of course- and no, I'm not kidding) Di Matteo what his experience was like as an Italian descendant living in New Jersey. For a brief period of time, after discontinuing a Duke pre-med program and thus moving back to Jersey, he owned a restaurant called The Red Door. Whenever he visits Colorado or my family visits Bound Brook, NJ, he always has stories about the "mafia" members that made frequent visits to his restaurant. Before they were just anecdotes, but I'm sure he has some real insight as to what it means to be labeled a mafia member, when such a group hasn't really had any significant activity in years. Uncle Louie loves to talk, and I'm really looking forward to hearing from him.
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