Binghamton raises flag in honor of local Italian heritage

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – There was a lot of red, white and green at Binghamton’s City Hall this morning, to celebrate local Italian Americans.

Today is Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day, and Binghamton celebrated by raising the Italian Flag above city hall.

While many other communities across the country have shifted to referring to today as Indigenous People’s Day in honor of those who were already here when Christopher Columbus first traveled to the Western Hemisphere, Binghamton continues its tradition of honoring the explorer’s Italian heritage.

“The gateway from Europe to the continents of North and South America opened on the day that Columbus first step foot on the island known as San Salvador. It’s a day equated with Neil Armstrong’s and Buzz Aldrin’s first steps on the moon, or Wright Brothers first flight at Kitty Hawk,” said Grand Marshall of the Columbus Day Parade Rich Bucci.

Bucci is the grandson of Italian immigrants and a member of UNICO, the largest Italian-American service organization.

During the flag raising, Tri-Cities Opera singer, Sergio Mandujano performed a piece from the Italian opera, Rigoletto.

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