The Importance of Promoting Inclusive Institutions in Veneto: Cristina Cominacini on The Color of Our Children
In the vast research archive of Obehi Ewanfoh’s “The Journey,” we often focus on the voices of those who traveled across oceans to reach the shores of Italy. However, to understand the full scope of the African Diaspora experience, we must also listen to the professionals working within the Italian “Social Machinery.”
Learn How to Leverage Your Story through our Story To Asset Framework.
Cristina Cominacini, a social worker at the “Le Fate” Association in Verona, provides a critical, “Sovereign” analysis of the institutions that greet, or fail, the children of the Diaspora.
Her perspective serves as a vital diagnostic tool for Ewanfoh’s Story to Asset™ framework. She moves beyond the sentimentality of “integration” and looks at the structural gaps in the Italian educational system that prevent a story from becoming an asset. Below are the observations:
Excavation – The Paternalistic Barrier
In the Excavation Phase, we look for the hidden power dynamics that stifle growth. Cristina identifies a subtle but corrosive habit within the Italian school system: the Paternalistic Gaze.
She observes that many educators treat African parents not as peers or partners, but as children themselves.
“I think there are teachers who treat foreign parents as if they were children… it is that paternalistic ‘I will explain how you should do things’ attitude. It implies ‘I am superior to you.’ But that is simply not true. You might have an engineering degree from your home country, and the teacher might only have a high school diploma. Superiority is not defined by how well you speak Italian.”
For Obehi Ewanfoh, this is a classic case of Institutional Misalignment. When the system fails to “excavate” the true professional background of a parent, it defaults to a linguistic hierarchy.
If you are an engineer who struggles with Italian grammar, the system often treats you as if you have no “genius” to offer.
Cristina’s insight warns us: If you allow an institution to define you by your limitations rather than your mastery, your story remains a liability.
Translation – From Integration to Mutual Enrichment
Phase 2 (Translation) is about redefining the language we use to describe our presence. Cristina argues that the term “integration” has been hollowed out to mean “forced adaptation.” She translates a more robust vision for the Diaspora: The Wealth of Exchange.
“I like to think that education should be an exchange… anti-racist education means passing on to the kids that the exchange with other cultures is a richness, not a nuisance. It is not that they come to take something away; they enrich your class, your city, your neighborhood.”
She translates the “presence of the other” from a social cost into a Community Asset. Cristina is adamant that “doing nothing” is an educational failure.
When teachers ignore insults on the playground or pretend not to hear a racial slur, they are training children in the art of exclusion.
True Institutional Sovereignty requires “daily action”, stopping the bus, pausing the lesson, and forcing a reflection on the value of the person standing next to you.
Alignment – The Eurocentric Knowledge Gap
The Alignment Phase focuses on whether an institution’s tools are fit for the modern market. Cristina identifies a massive deficit in the Italian school’s “software.” While the world has become a global village, the curriculum often remains like a local museum.
“The school as an institution hasn’t made the transition to understanding that we are in a different society. The teaching is not updated. History is taught in a Eurocentric way… There is almost nothing on Africa beyond its status as a colonized country. We need to include other points of view; otherwise, everything continues to be only our point of view.”
See also Lessons from Obehi Ewanfoh: The Power of Personal and Cultural Narratives in Social Entrepreneurship
This is a failure of Market Positioning. If a school only teaches one perspective, it leaves its students, both Italian and foreign, ill-equipped for a globalized world.
Cristina notes that while multicultural textbooks and tools exist, using them is currently a “single choice” made by brave individual teachers, rather than a systemic standard. For the Diaspora, this means your children are often learning in a system that is “unaligned” with their reality.
Creation – Reclaiming the Mirror of Self
In the Creation Phase, we look at how external labels shape our internal identity. Cristina shares a chilling example of how the “Creation” of a negative image can destroy a young person’s potential. She discusses the concept of the Reflected Image.
“The image we have of ourselves is made of how we see ourselves and how others see us. If the image others have of you is very negative for various reasons, you risk becoming a negative person.”
She recalls the story of a Brazilian boy in Verona, adopted by an Italian family. Despite being legally Italian, his skin color made him a target.
“On the bus, the police perquisiva (searched) him all the time for nothing, just for his appearance. After two or three searches, you start to believe there is something wrong with you.”
In the Story to Asset™ framework, this is why Narrative Defense is so important. If you do not “create” your own story and stand firmly in your sovereignty, the “creations” of the system, the police stop, the teacher’s low expectation, will become your reality.
Legacy – The Crisis of the “Glass Ceiling”
The final phase, Legacy, is where Cristina observes a heartbreaking shift in the Diaspora’s “Sovereign Goals.” Before the 2008 economic crisis, African parents came to Italy to “invest” in their children’s professional futures. They dreamed of doctors and lawyers. Today, that optimism is fracturing.
“I’ve heard parents say, ‘I don’t know if I will stay in Italy’ because they see no future for their children. I’ve heard Ghanaian parents say they are thinking of going to England.”
Why this shift? Cristina points to the Academic Glass Ceiling. Many brilliant Diaspora students are systematically directed away from Liceo (academic high schools) and toward Scuola Professionale (vocational schools).
“Professors weren’t able to evaluate their skills; they only looked at the linguistic aspect. It’s obvious they struggle with specific technical language, but that shouldn’t mean they can’t go to university. This has created a situation where few go to university, which was the deep desire of many parents.”
This is the ultimate threat to Institutional Sovereignty. When a system uses a “linguistic gap” to block the “intellectual path,” it is stealing the legacy of the Diaspora.
Strategies for the Sovereign Parent
Obehi Ewanfoh’s reporting on Cristina Cominacini’s professional insights offers three definitive strategies for the modern African Diaspora:
- Challenge Paternalism with Paperwork: Do not let a teacher treat you as “inferior.” Bring your “Sovereign Assets” to the table—your degrees, your professional history, and your clear expectations. Superiority is not defined by Italian fluency; it is defined by the quality of your contribution.
- Audit the Curriculum: If the school is only teaching Eurocentric history, you must be the “Supplementary Educator” at home. Fill the “African History Gap” yourself so your child sees their heritage as a source of power, not just a footnote of colonization.
- Fight for the University Path: If a teacher suggests a vocational school for a child you know is capable of more, challenge the evaluation. Insist on an assessment of competency, not just vocabulary. Your child’s legacy depends on their access to the highest levels of education.
Your Next Step Toward Sovereignty
Cristina Cominacini reminds us that while the school system is fumbling with its “updated software,” you cannot afford to wait. You must be the “Active Component” that ensures your story and your children’s story become an asset.
See also Decoding the Igbo Origins, Language, Culture & Identity as a Signature Asset | Derick Ofodirinwa
Are you ready to move from “Economic Tenancy” to “Institutional Sovereignty”? Are you ready to stop being “paternalized” and start being the architect of your own family’s success?
The bridge to a more professional, more sovereign future is waiting. At AClasses Academy, we empower you to take your professional skills and “translate” them into a brand that no institutional bias can hold back.
