CULTURE |
COMMUNITY |
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East Harlem: Schools
Italian-American young people formed clubs, such as the Italian American Students League. This organization focused mostly on educating first generation children of immigrants about their heritage. The league was established in 1936 on 116th street. Leonard Covello’s encouragement helped to forge clubs like the Italian American Students League. Leonard Covello was one of the most influential leaders in East Harlem. As an immigrant, a teacher (at DeWitt Clinton H.S. and New York University), and a social activist Covello developed a strong loyalty to education and the future of the inhabitants in East Harlem.
Between 1870 and 1910 an estimated 65,000 apartments were built, which is stark evidence to the rise in population, and the demand for housing in East Harlem. With this large population came children. The greatest problem that East Harlem faced besides the gangsters was juvenile delinquency. The rise of juvenile delinquency kept Covello and his staff (at Benjamin Franklin H.S.) busy trying to derive solutions to this threat on Italian Harlem’s future. The Boy’s club was born in the mid 1920’s, to counteract the appeal of gangs. In many cases this solution worked, because some young boys chose education over gangs. Orsi, quoted a resident as stating, “you could do two things when we were kids-you either became a thief and eventually go to the rackets or you could go to school.” In addition to the problem of juvenile delinquency, there was a lack of modern school buildings and facilities. Teachers who volunteered from Benjamin Franklin High School represented East Harlem on a speakers’ committee to voice this deficiency in education among many others.