Order Sons of Italy in America (OSIA), the largest and oldest national organization for Italian Americans, has written to Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, urging him to cancel his government's plans to confer honourary Italian citizenship on the American actor Robert DeNiro, whose paternal grandfather was born in Italy.
The OSIA letter was prompted by newspaper reports that DeNiro would be so honoured during his visit to Italy next month for the Venice Film Festival.
The letter was faxed to Mr. Berlusconi's offices in Rome and was signed by OSIA National President Joseph Sciame and the OSIA Commission for Social Justice President Albert DeNapoli, Esq.
In their letter, the two OSIA leaders pointed out that since his starring role in The Godfather II in 1974, DeNiro has made a career of playing gangsters of Italian descent. Ironically, he will be in Italy to promote his latest film, Shark Tale, a children's gangster movie produced by Steven Spielberg's company, DreamWorks, SKG.
"From our conversations with DreamWorks and from what we have seen to date from the studio's own website, promotional material and trailer, this movie will perpetuate the image of Italian Americans as Mafia gangsters," Sciame and DeNapoli wrote. "We are especially concerned since this movie is directed at children who are particularly susceptible to absorbing negative stereotyping as studies from the Jewish Anti-Defamation League and others have proven.
"We therefore respectfully request that the Republic of Italy cancel its plans to make Mr. DeNiro an honourary citizen. He has done nothing to promote Italian culture in the United States. Instead, OSIA and its members hold him and his movies responsible for considerably damaging the collective reputations of both Italians and Italian Americans."
The letter also pointed out that Italy's conferring such an honour on DeNiro would be perceived as an insult by millions of Italian Americans who have long objected to the actor's "distorted and unbalanced portrayal of people of Italian heritage."

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