Not a new member of the family. A tragedy from the North Atlantic highlighted in Roma Tearne's new book, 'The Pier'. Apparently whilst on holiday in Tuscany (I'm guessing Lucca as it has a memorial to the sinking of the Arandora Star) Tearne met an Italian man whose father and other relatives died aboard the ship. It reminded me of the recent controversy raised by the Pope as to whether the Armenian nation experienced genocide in the first world war, but on a micro scale.
The ship was loaded with German and Italian interns and POWs. Many were essentially British, having no military interest and having living and worked as shop keepers in Britain for many years. But their origins were suspect. The power of their ethnic label was ignited by the poisonous political climate of the time.
Was the ship adequately supported as it transported the interns from Liverpool to Canada? It had been fitted with anti-torpedo nets in the past. It had a crew of 300 british, so we presume, so it wasn't just a death trap. It was sunk at 6.00am on the 2nd July 1940 by a German U boat.
Did the British public and authorities really care about these people? They were reported at the time as befitted their ethnic sterotypes, the Germans 'brutish and selfish', the Italians pathetic, and scared.
I was reminded by the revulsion I felt yesterday when I examined my own immediate reaction to hearing about the 1000's of deaths at sea of southern migrants to Europe from Libya. 'Better they die than come, unwanted, to the Europe and UK". A terrible fascist thought I reject.
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