09/12/2015
Order Sons of Italy in America
New York State Grand Lodge
“Save Columbus Day Petition”
Through the White House’s “We the People” initiative, we are petitioning for an official Capital luncheon and White House evening reception in recognition and endorsement of Columbus Day and the contributions of the 25 million Americans of Italian descent. With our holiday consistently under attack, we are asking the White House to rededicate the Presidency to both the holiday and our community. We also ask the President to host an official yearly signing ceremony in celebration of Columbus Day, the Italian American community and the importance of the immigrant experience in the making of our great nation. Columbus Day represents not only the accomplishments and contributions of the Italian Americans, but also the indelible spirit of risk, sacrifice and self- reliance of a great Italian icon that defines the United States of America.
Date Signature Print Name Lodge
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Completed petition sheets should be mailed to:
The Grand Lodge of New York, 2101 Bellmore Avenue, Bellmore, N.Y., 11710
Petition Instructions:
As you may or may not know Columbus Day, which is a Federal Holiday, is under attack. Many local municipalities and school districts have either re-named the holiday after other ethnic/cultural groups or eliminated its recognition. In an effort to stem this tide and maintain the proper recognition Columbus Day deserves, this petition has been developed.
There are two (2) different petitions attached. The first which includes the Logos of both the Order Sons of Italy in America and the Commission for Social Justice is to be utilized within the Order. The other petition which does not have any logos should be used to obtain signatures from non-members ex. at Knights of Columbus councils, Rotary club, Kiwanis club, PTA, etc. This intention is to obtain as many signatures as possible. This effort is not limited to the members of the Order Sons of Italy in America only or to only Italian-Americans. In addition to our Lodge members, try to make an effort to collect signatures from the general public either through various civic groups and social clubs as well as in malls and at various shopping centers. If we want to seriously attack the problem of losing recognition of Columbus Day, we must be pro-active.
1) You can make as many copies of these petitions as is necessary.
2) Designate one person in your Lodge (your liaison) or organization to collect the petitions and then forward them to the address at the bottom of each petition sheet.
3) Make sure the petitions are filled out properly.
4) All petitions must be submitted by November 30, 2015. We must obtain 100,000 signatures before we can send anything to the White House.
These petitions have been developed over a period of months with input from both state and national officers and have recently received approval for use from NYS Grand Lodge, Supreme Lodge and both NYS Commission for Social Justice and National Commission for Social Justice.
Any questions or concerns can be directed to:
Charlie Lucie
NYS District 1 CSJ Chairman
[email protected]
