Immigration and Tolerance (3ème 4, for RREV COMENIUS )

The story of Elisa and her Italian great grandfather. I am Elisa and I am going to tell you the story of my great grandfather. His name was Gaëtan Conti. He was born on July 22nd 1901 in Leon fort in Italy and he died in February 1966 in Toulon (France). Gaëtan had dark blue eyes, he was not tall 1.65 meters. In 1921, he married Rose Pane in Italy. At that time he was a sheperd. He left his country in 1930 because he did not agree with the political regime and also because he was starving. He wanted a better life and he thought he could have it in France. When he arrived he took a job as a stone breaker in quarries and later he was employed by the arsenal. He built a nice house in Cannes with his own hands. He was hard-working and determined. Then he founded a large family of nine sons and five daughters. Gaëtan could not speak French at first, he spoke an Italian dialect from Sicily but thanks to the tolerance of his friends and the people around him, he was able to integrate successfully. Despite difficulties, tolerance contributed to the integration of many immigrants.

The story of Nicolas and his Italian great grandfather. I am Nicolas and I am going to tell you the story of my great grandfather. His name was Antoine Zedda. He was born in 1904 in a village called Calangianus in Sardinia (Italy). His hair was black and he wore a little black moustache. At the age of 22, he decided to leave his hometown because for him France was an Eden and he thought he could easily get a job and a better life there. When he arrived in France, he found a job and dreamt of starting a family. He was a bricklayer for his entire life and he met no difficulties because he always had a stable work. I know he was fully integrated and accepted by the local people. Thanks to his ambition and his will, he managed to achieve all his projects but tolerance also contributed to his successful integration.

The story of two brothers, Samuel and Allan and their great grandmother. We are two brothers, Samuel and Allan, and we are going to tell you the story of our great grandmother. Her name was Olivia Martins-Mestre. She was born in Lisbon on March 20th, She left her country in 1947 after World War II because her husband had died and she wanted a better life for her son. When she settled in France, she found a job as a waitress in a restaurant. She met difficulties with French language because she only spoke Portuguese and she was alone with her child. One day, a man, older than her, offered to help her bring up and educate her son, our grandfather. Despite their differences, this man became her second husband and he gave her the life she wanted, We can say that tolerance and love contributed to her successful integration.

The story of Romain and his Italian great- grandfather. I am Romain and I am going to tell you the story of my great grandfather. His name was Armido Righi. He was born in Italy in He liked nature and cars and he looked like my grandfather and my father a lot. Armido left his native country during the second World War because of the war. His parents and he were looking for work and they immigrated in France together. When they arrived he found a job at the Town hall of Toulon where he worked until he retired. Once in France, he was arrested and sent to a concentration camp. Being a prisoner in Germany hardened him and he learnt what suffering meant. This terrible experience made him tolerant. He also found it difficult to learn French. He knew it was necessary if he wanted to take care of his children and feed his family. Armido died when I was one month old ; to my regret I was not able to know him.

Soon the end. Today, WE, their grandchildren, are all pupils at Notre-Dame school in Toulon and like us, 90 per cent of our classmates have a member of their families who immigrated in France. Despite our different origins, Portuguese, Italian, Algerian, German, Armenian, Tunisian, Spanish, Madagascan, Vietnamese, Swiss, Irish, Scottish, we are all French and we all ended in the same place where we are taking part to a COMENIUS Project which promotes REAL HUMAN VALUES. We are the future. Let’s not forget TOLERANCE made it possible.

The end. Written by Elisa, Nicolas, Samuel, Allan and Romain, 3 ème 4, NOTRE-DAME SCHOOL…