Tag Archives: Filippo Mazzei Award

Rosario Iaconis did a splendid job in the March issue of illuminating the vast Roman legacy overlooked in Ken Burns’ documentary “The American Revolution.” Also conspicuous by their absence from the popular PBS series are the many Italians who played pivotal roles in the birth of our nation. Iaconis made mention of the seminal contribution Filippo Mazzei made to the Revolution, noting that Thomas Jefferson derived “all men are created equal” from a 1774 essay penned by his dear friend. There’s so much more to that story. A Tuscan physician, Mazzei moved to America in 1773 to establish agricultural experiments, …

John Idler, president and general manager of ABC7 Chicago, and Alison Pure-Slovin, Midwest director of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, were honored at the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans’ annual media luncheon on May 18. Idler will be given the Dante Award, which is bestowed on a member of the media who lives up to Dante Alighieri’s call to be no timid friend to truth; Pure-Slovin will receive the Mazzei Award, which is presented to a person who shows extraordinary skills in the world of public affairs. Dante Award Recipient John Idler “As a longtime supporter of the work and …