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Message from Ambassador Claudio Taffuri, on the occasion of the Italian National Day

logo 2 giugno 2020

Dear Fellow Italians, Dear Friends,

June 2nd is traditionally a time to come together to remember the birth of the Italian Republic and to celebrate its history, its culture, its traditions, and its people.

This year however, our National Day has a special significance, and we will not be able to meet together as we usually do, not only because of the current restrictions on social gatherings, but out of respect for all those in Italy who are suffering, for all the victims of this terrible epidemic and for all those who, in Canada as well, have suffered illness and loss.

This is, for all of us without exception, a time of great distress. Our societies, our economies are under growing pressure. Our way of living, of working, of relating to one another is changing radically as we face an unexpected present that has brought us to uncharted territory.

We Italians were the first in Europe to be struck, brutally and without warning, by what many have compared to a massive tsunami, but we met it with determination and discipline.

Today, I am proud to honour the sacrifice of every Italian who willingly deprived themselves for so long of the closeness of their loved ones and the pleasure of the society of others; I am proud to honour the selfless dedication of the physicians and healthcare workers, the Civil Protection and law enforcement officers who, at the risk of their own health and safety, worked tirelessly together to fight the spread of the disease.

This great collective effort has been rewarded, and on the strength of that experience we will restart our country, though the difficult choices made and the terrible cost will long be remembered. In the face of this crisis we have shown once again that we are a resilient people, capable of unwavering commitment and sacrifice, able to endure and overcome adversity.

This is who we are, and I recognize these qualities in you, Canada’s Italians! In this country you thrived, facing every obstacle with perseverance and determination, never giving up. And you did this while continuing to nurture a deep connection to your heritage, a bond that in times of need has unfailingly translated into generous support and solidarity. Thank you!

I would like to express my personal gratitude to the members of the institutions of the Italian-Canadian community: to the Italian parliamentarians elected abroad, the members of the Comites, the CGIE, and the National Congress of Italian-Canadians; your contributions play an important role in my daily work as Ambassador.

Finally, I would like to thank the representatives of the highest offices of this nation and of the government of Canada, and members of the political, economic, and cultural communities for their expressions of solidarity. I thank them for their words of support and admiration for the dignity with which Italians are meeting this challenge, and for the effectiveness of the measures enacted by our government. My thoughts are also with our many Canadian friends who, despite facing the same sacrifices and difficulties, reached out personally to express their sorrow at the images of Italy’s suffering.

Dear fellow Italians, dear friends, I began this greeting by saying it would not be possible for us to celebrate our National Day together as we usually do, at the Italian Residence. But this does not mean that we cannot come together virtually to honour our Republic, to share our deep feeling of respect and love for our country, its values of unity and solidarity, strong in the knowledge that at this difficult time we gave the very best of ourselves.

To honour this togetherness, I would like to leave you with a gift, an ebook entitled Piazze In(visibili). It is a work dedicated to our magnificent cities and towns by our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, their beautiful squares immortalized in the deafening silence that ruled the darkest days of the epidemic. The message is powerful and full of hope. These images speak more eloquently than any words of the desire for rebirth and the energy of a country that is ready and waiting to welcome you once more.

So it is with the greatest faith and conviction in a better future for us all, that I wish you a happy National Day and I look forward to when we can again celebrate our country together. Viva l’Italia!

                                                                                                                                               

                                                                                                                                                              Claudio Taffuri

                                                                                                                                                        firma amb.taffuri