“…E ce ne costa lacreme ‘sta America!” (America costs us tears!)
Thus it sang in the 1920s the song by Libero Bovio and Francesco Buongiovanni, entitled Lacreme Napulitane. It was interpreted by Gennaro Pasquariello and years later by Mario Merola too.
With the unification of Italy, the South also experienced emigration and by 1920 more than a third of the emigrants were headed to the East coast of the United States. A few years later, that is in 1925, the general commissariat of emigration distributed a Manual for the education of emigrants, a book of more than 600 pages that provided information on regulations and legislative provisions, also including notions of world economic geography. Those who consulted this manual felt more prepared to face a new life in the new world. In reality, the living conditions of the emigrants were miserable. The emigrants themselves and the children of emigrants such as John Fante, Pietro Di Donato or even Jerre Mangione for example, described the squalor and misery of Italian emigrants and someone denounced the abandonment and indifference of the Italian State towards its citizens treated overseas as meat for slaughter.
For many, the American dream has turned into a tragedy, even if, apparently, the Italians have forgotten this and treat immigrants as they themselves would never want to be treated.
At Napulitanamente we like to listen to all those who emigrated abroad from Southern Italy and from all over the Mediterranean.
We plan to publish stories and testimonials from all over the Mediterranean area in order to to dust off history and regain awareness through real memories and experiences.
Write to fromabroad@napulitanamente.com
Click image below to watch and listen to
Ascapede Duo singing “Lacreme Napulitane”
