I was born in Rome, Italy, from an American mother and an Italian father. Both of my parents are white, as my mother’s ancestors came from Britain and Italy, and my father’s from southern Italy. My parents’ families both come from similar socioeconomic backgrounds: their parents are all educated and have always been able to live comfortably and travel. Fortunately, they have been able to transcend this privilege to me, as I have always been able to attend private schools and not have to worry about basic needs. I grew up speaking Italian with my father and his family, and English with my mother’s family. I also spoke English in school (as I attended an international school in Rome). Thus, in terms of language, I never felt that I was in a subordinate position. I understood people around me and spoke both languages fluently, whether I was on the soccer field in Italy or at a diner in the United States.
This ties in to race as well. Because I am caucasian, both in Italy and the United States I felt like the majority of people were like me, so I never experienced spending a lot of time in an area where I was different from the dominant racial group. However, I would like to underline the cultural differences present in Italy. As I mentioned when presenting my cultural symbol, being from Naples (my father’s family), is something that people in Rome and Northern Italy look down on and discriminate against. Although I can’t say that this cultural difference is something that determined my path, it is definitely something that I had to live through growing up, especially in a soccer context. The rivalry between my team (Napoli) and other teams (especially Roma and northern teams) have accentuated territorial discrimination at stadiums and in discussions over the past decades. An example of how my background has shaped my language is that I never really learned how to speak neapolitan (which is almost a unique language). This is because every time I went to visit my grandparents in Naples, and I would hear people on the streets and repeat things they said, my grandparents would tell me to not speak like that and to speak “proper” italian. Looking back I think this had class motivations.
In addition, I am Catholic and straight male, which, in Italy, are part of the religion and sexual orientation dominant groups. Thus, I believe that my privilege in the context of these different subgroups have put me in a fortunate position to be able to study, live comfortably, and enjoy pleasures like traveling that I need to be grateful about. However, it is important to underline that because of my international family and education, I am able to understand my position in different contexts, like in the US, and how to navigate this in different places and different people.
