In recognition of the 250th anniversary of the United States, the Italian American Studies Association (IASA) invites scholars, artists, and practitioners to reflect on the theme “Italian Americans and the Making of America.” As the nation marks two and a half centuries since the Revolution, this conference examines how Italian Americans and members of the broader Italian diaspora have participated in, shaped, challenged, and reimagined the American project.
Freedom has long occupied a central place in American discourse, yet its meaning has never been stable or universally accessible. Rather than treating freedom as a self-evident ideal, this conference approaches it as a historical, cultural, social, and civic problem; one shaped by access to labor, education, enterprise, religious practice, political representation, creative expression, technological innovation, and full belonging.
