The 18th Annual Memphis Italian Festival will take place this weekend (June 1-2) in Marquette Park in East Memphis (basically the corner of Park and Mt. Moriah/Mendenhall). While some often think of diversity only in terms of black and white, diversity means more than that. One of the great things about Memphis is our diversity. We're blessed to have such a cool, funky and eclectic mix of people. That mix is the base from which our world famous music and BBQ comes. It's a source of strength, not a problem.
In addition to being racially diverse (in terms of a strong African American community here), Memphis has long had sizable populations from a number of different backgrounds. One of those sizable populations is the Italian-American community here. This is their weekend, and much like St. Patrick's Day when we all claim to be a little Irish, this weekend is also for anyone who "claims" to be a little Italian or wishes they were.
Having grown up attending Holy Rosary church and school (which the festival benefits), I can remember its roots. I could be mistaken about this but I think the festival sprang out of an international food bazaar that was held for several years in the school's gym. Basically, the families in the parish that had some strongly identifiable ethnic background would cook the dishes from their families' homelands and folks would show up and pay a few dollars to eat good food and get a little education on the foods of the world. I don't remember when or how but I seem to remember the Italian families dominating that event and it morphed into the first festival which I think was held on the ball field at Holy Rosary. It just grew and grew from there to the point that they needed to move the festival somewhere bigger. So they moved to Marquette Park and it has grown each year since then. They probably need to move again to somewhere bigger but I wonder if they will because the location is so central to East Memphis and is near the church and school.
We can thank the Italians of Memphis for great produce (M. Palazola Produce Co.), many great restaurants (all of the Grisanti restaurants, Lucchesi Pasta Co., Ciao Bella, Brooklyn Bridge, Pete and Sam's etc.), some of our original supermarkets (Montesi's), specialty markets (Mantia's), business leaders and many many other contributions to our city.
The festival is also a perfect example of another reason that Memphis is a great place. Memphis is the kind of place in which a small group of people can make a real difference. You don't have to have been from here for a hundred years, go to school at a certain place or even belong to a country club to succeed here. (Those things help but are not necessary.) Part of the Memphis culture is our openness to anyone with a good idea, who loves Memphis and is willing to work hard to make a difference.
Having the strong Italian-American community here and their rich heritage is part of the reason that Memphis is a great place to live, play, work and raise a family. So go check out the festival this weekend and while you are at it, start thinking of that next great thing that you can start here!
Here's a link to the festival: http://www.memphisitalianfestival.com/
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