Federal Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Alan Tudge, visiting the Italian Historical Society
THE ITALIAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY, CO.AS.IT.’S JEWEL IN THE CROWN 16
O
ne of the less visible, yet a jewel in the crown of CO.AS.IT., is the Italian Historical Society (IHS). It too has come of age having been born 37 years ago on the initiative of the then president, Sir James Gobbo. In his autobiography, “Something to declare”, published in 2010, Gobbo explains with few but incisive words, what moved him to establish the IHS. “I always felt it was important to record the story of Italian migrants, but I wanted it to be part of the total story-and not some sad, separate ethnic museum with tired memorabilia, open only one day a month”. The IHS came therefore into being with the chief purpose of placing the story of Italian immigration within the wider context of the history of Australia.
CO.AS.IT.’s
50TH ANNIVERSARY