FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ------------ Contact: Diane E. Crespy, (202)
547-2900
"The Sopranos" Creator Derides
Anti-Defamation Protests
* * *
Italian-Americans should "Instruct
their youth ... that gangsterism is
wrong," says HBO series producer David Chase
Washington, D.C., Sept. 8, 1999 - The Commission
for Social Justice (CSJ), the
anti-defamation arm of the 500,000 member Order
Sons of Italy in America
(OSIA), has assailed the producer and writer of
the HBO series "The Sopranos,"
David Chase, for comments made during his recent
appearance at a writers'
symposium, suggesting that most persons involved
in organized crime are Italian and denying responsibility for perpetuating
the Italian-mob stereotype in
"The Sopranos."
Chase was a featured panelist at the "Words into
Pictures" symposium at the
Writers Guild Foundation's conference on writing
for film and television, June 4-6,
1999. Chase, when asked how he responds to Italian-American
critics who say he
has perpetuated a damaging stereotype, said "I
don't think it has any value ...
especially since if you pick up a newspaper and
you see a story about organized
crime, those names are Italian ... and if they're
really concerned about it ... they
should really be organizing some sort of grassroots
neighborhood thing to get rid of
those people ... and to instruct their youth and
their children that gangsterism is
wrong."
"The Sopranos" supervising producer and co-writer
Frank Renzulli, also a panelist,
said that if Italian-American gangster characters
were removed from programming,
there would be "no Italians on television."
CSJ President John Dabbene berated Chase and the
other producers and writers
of the series, saying they lack moral integrity
and knowledge of the organized crime
situation in the United States. "The U.S. Department
of Justice has reported that
less than one-tenth of one percent of Italian-Americans
are involved in organized
crime," Dabbene said, citing a Justice Department
report. "Additionally, organized
crime in this country includes many ethnicities
- virtually none are immune."
CSJ Executive Director Dr. Philip R. Piccigallo
added, "Chase's remarks reveal his
true intentions - to sensationalize and profit
personally from the wholesale
glamorization and commercialization of an infinitesimal
part of the Italian-American
population.
"In past explanations," Piccigallo said, "Chase
at least sought to mitigate the damage
caused to an entire ethnic group by his series,
by emphasizing that it represented
merely a tiny portion of our nation's 26 million
Italian-Americans. Now he believes
we are cultivating and nurturing gangsters in our
homes and families."
Segments of the symposium have been aired through
the media. The CSJ became
aware of Chase's remarks when NPR in Philadelphia
included it as a news item
with sound bites.
The CSJ, with the help of other Italian-American
organizations, is spearheading a
demonstration during the Emmy Awards on Sept. 12,
in New York. Hundreds are
expected to turn out to protest "The Sopranos,"
which has garnered 16 Emmy
nominations. When the series premiered in February
1999, the CSJ immediately
took action and complained about the negative stereotypical
image of
Italian-Americans portrayed in the series.
The Commission for Social Justice is dedicated to
ensuring equal concern,
treatment, respect, freedom, and opportunity for
all people regardless of race,
ethnicity, creed, age, or sex, particularly those
of Italian heritage. For more
information on the CSJ or the protest in New York,
call 202-547-2900.