Challenging the Narrative
Lawyer Ralph Mastromonaco revisits Quebec’s language and educational history
By Joey Franco
Ralph Mastromonaco, a criminal lawyer from Montreal with 41 years of experience, opens up about a controversial and overlooked aspect of Quebec’s history experienced by many children of Italian immigrants, including himself. He recently penned an article challenging the long-standing narrative surrounding the Italian-speaking community’s relationship with Quebec’s educational and linguistic policies. He argues the media has misrepresented the historical challenges faced by immigrants, particularly the imposed anglicization of children of Italian immigrants practiced by French Catholic schools of the ’50s and ’60s, which diverted these students to English schools.
“What was going on in the ’50s and ’60s was an imposed anglicization of children of Italian immigrants.”
Could you explain the issues you’ve brought to the attention of many media outlets?
I wrote an article dealing with the language issue in Quebec and the false narrative propagated by the media in Quebec regarding English-speaking Italian communities.
After the Second World War, Quebec had a denominational school system divided into French Catholic schools, English Catholic schools and English Protestant schools. There was no demographic need for the French speaking majority to be linguistically reinforced by immigrant children. When Italians immigrated to Montreal, many parents were prevented from enrolling their children in French Catholic schools. That was wrong.
At that time, Quebec society did not have human rights legislation on the books nor a human rights culture. It was more or less socially acceptable to express prejudices and engage in discriminatory practices.
I believe many Italian immigrants, like me, were rejected by the French-speaking Catholic schools out of a desire to maintain student population homogeneity. We were perceived as being different or even difficult to teach. The first injustice was to reject us when we had every right to attend these schools.
Living Italian Style
Alessandro Montelli
Nickname: Ale Occupation: Musician and recording artist Age: 33 Generation: First—I was born and raised in Italy. Dad from: Bitritto (Bari), Puglia Mom from: Toronto, Ontario Raised in: Bari, Italy Speaks: Italian, English, Spanish If you could eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be? Pizza alla crudaiola (red base, mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, arugula, strong ricotta) What’s an Italian tradition you want to carry on? Making pasta late at night. What advice would you give a 5-year-old you? You will struggle, but it’s going to be okay, kid! Be smart with your earnings, Don’t forget to smile (as my dad would say). Keep practicing your music. Dream BIG! Who are you named after? I’m named after my grandpa from my father’s side, Alessandro. In our hometown, they would all call him Sandrino. He was known for owning a gas station back in the day, and then a bike shop that now is run by our family. Favourite Italian expression and why: “La vita è bella.” It’s a famous Italian movie about the Second World War, and I also have it tattooed on my right arm. What do you want your legacy to be? I want my legacy to be inspired by my story and my music. I want people to not be afraid to follow their dreams and be themselves, even if that means leaving your country and comfort zone to move across the ocean. What makes you most proud to be Italian-Canadian? Having a very loving and respectful family who always has my back. Being able to explore my roots and find my path in Canada.
Quick Pasta e Fagioli
By Gabriel Riel-Salvatore, Managing Editor
Halfway between a thick soup and creamy pasta, this comforting dish is common in many parts of Italy and counts endless variations. The trick to preparing it during the week is to use canned beans and short pasta. You can add a small portion of pureed beans to thicken the final broth. Perfect without meat, some prefer it with crispy pancetta or gambuccio (end part of the prosciutto). I prefer making it with salami and plenty of Pecorino Romano cheese.
Let There Be Luxe
The many merits of luxury travel clubs and tailored travel experiences
By Silvana Longo, Travel Editor
We know those who can, already do. Free time and disposable income aside, there is a growing trend towards indulging in enriching travel experiences whether that’s once a year,celebrating a milestone or your habitual holiday style. “We became members in 2005,” says Dino DeLuca, chief operating officer of a private equity firm in Calgary. “As a family of five, Exclusive Resorts gave us the opportunity to vacation in beautiful private residences around the world with a dedicated concierge, and all the amenities that young children might need.” According to DeLuca,
“It’s a far superior experience to staying in a hotel.”
Operating much like a private country club, you pay a one-time membership fee to join for 10 years and then annual dues correlated to how many days you plan to travel that year. In an increasingly unpredictable world, their fixed pricing model embodies the adage, “Chi spende più, spende meno,” as Exclusive Resorts owns the majority of their core residence portfolio and fees are less susceptible to the fluctuation of an ever-changing market.
“Whether it is a ski vacation, beach holiday, travelling to a major city or unique trips of a lifetime, we enjoy visiting different locations every year,” enthuses DeLuca. With his membership spanning close to two decades, he attests,
“Exclusive Resorts is a superior option to owning a second home.”
Seamless travel experiences and a variety of destinations at your fingertips, each family is matched with an expert ambassador who acts as a travel planner and real-time problem solver for each vacation. While on-site, dedicated personal concierges take care of every detail, big or small, from dinner reservations, to grocery delivery, to arranging-in-home spa treatments and celebrations.
Ivana Bombardieri
The voice speaking to the heart of Italians
By Vittoria Zorfini
Ivana Bombardieri, the most renowned and appreciated voice of CFMB1280 in Montreal, has received the prestigious Canadian radio broadcasting Rosalie Award 2024. Given annually by Radio Trailblazers to a woman who has achieved success in the radio industry for her spirit of innovation, leadership and solidarity, the award ceremony took place on June 4 in Toronto at the Canadian Music Week gala.
As a child, what did you dream of doing? How did radio come into your life?
I dreamed of being a flight attendant to travel all over the world. I landed in radio by pure chance after participating in a beauty contest for fun. In the room was the producer of CFMB’s Italian programming, who was then looking for a female voice, intrigued because I was the only contestant from northern Italy. After a few days, accompanied by my mom, I went to visit the studios on Drummond Street. Mario De Filippo was on air and unexpectedly turned on the microphone and started to ask me questions live. I remember my head throbbing, but within seconds I felt perfectlycomfortable, as if I had always done this job. It was a real lightbulb moment, and it became the great passion of my life. From there, my incredible journey began. Everything else is history.
“CFMB acted as the glue between the community and Italy. It broadcast 20 hours of programing in Italian every week that included news, music and entertainment. This helped the compatriots keep ties with their culture and language, while facilitating their integration into Canadian society.”
