Officers

Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations

OFFICERS Elected 2022

President: Hon. Basil M. Russo

Basil Russo holds the unique distinction of leading two of the largest and most influential Italian American organizations in the United States: the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations (COPOMIAO) and the Italian Sons and Daughters of America (ISDA).

As COPOMIAO’s president, he serves as national spokesperson for 77 of the largest and most influential cultural, charitable, fraternal, educational, and anti-defamation Italian American organizations in the U.S. He initiated three national Italian American summit meetings that fostered a spirit of unity among the 400 participating organizations that had not existed before. Those meetings resulted in the creation of six committees to address issues of mutual concern to all Italian Americans, including the nationwide engagement and empowerment of younger generations, pro-Columbus advocacy, the support and founding of Italian American museums, the dissemination of Italian American educational resources to schools and universities across the nation, and the launch of a film fellowship that attracts the best and brightest filmmakers to produce work that elevates the culture and subverts stereotypes.

He then established a precedent-setting reception for Italian American leaders with the Italian ambassador in Washington, D.C., to build meaningful ties between Italian Americans and the Italian government. In 2022, he led a delegation of Italian American leaders to Rome to meet with prominent leaders at the highest levels of the Italian government and the Vatican, further strengthening a strategic relationship aimed at preserving Italian American culture while enhancing commercial ties between the U.S. and Italy. The trip concluded with an audience with His Holiness, Pope Francis.

In September 2026, Basil will lead another delegation to Rome and Vatican City to hold an audience with Pope Leo XIV and meet with Italian leaders and dignitaries, reaffirming these same objectives.

On the domestic front, Basil met directly with the Biden Administration to offer guidance on the significant and often overlooked history binding the Italian American community to Columbus Day. These efforts culminated in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 Columbus Day Proclamations — historically accurate federal documents tracing the struggles and rise of Italian American culture. Most notably, First Lady Jill Biden accepted Basil’s request to host a delegation of Italian American leaders at the White House on Oct. 12, 2023, to celebrate Italian American Heritage Month. During this first-ever Italian American conference, Basil met with Dr. Biden and President Joe Biden. In 2024, the Bidens hosted Basil and his fellow COPOMIAO leaders once again at the White House in celebration of Italian American culture.

In the spring of 2025, Basil worked with the Trump Administration to install a replica of Baltimore’s Columbus statue on White House grounds — the first time in American history a Columbus statue was placed at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (Baltimore’s original statue was toppled and destroyed amid civil unrest in 2020).

Through the exceptional work of COPOMIAO National Counsel George Bochetto, Basil blocked the removal of Pittsburgh’s Columbus statue, restored the Columbus Day holiday in Philadelphia, and filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Columbus, Ohio, to restore its statue, which was arbitrarily removed by city leaders in 2020.

In 2014, Basil was elected national president of both the Italian Sons and Daughters of America (ISDA) and its affiliate, ISDA Financial Life. As ISDA president, he developed the largest Italian American social media platform in the country, which currently has more than 730,000 followers. As ISDA Financial Life president, he directs the largest Italian American insurance, IRA, and annuity company in the country, with over $467 million in assets. In 2017, Basil, his wife Patricia (Gallupoli), and their children created the Russo Brothers Italian American Filmmaker Forum (RBIAFF), which provides grants to aspiring filmmakers who depict the Italian American experience in a positive way. To date, more than 50 filmmakers have been awarded over $500,000 in grants, with several of the films being aired and acclaimed at prominent film festivals throughout the U.S. and Italy. From 2016 to 2021, he also served on the executive committee of the National Italian American Foundation in Washington, D.C.

Most recently, Basil co-founded a landmark fellowship program, the Italian American Future Leaders Convention (IAFL). The program’s purpose is to bring young Italian American leaders together from throughout the country and inspire them to embrace their Italian heritage and assume leadership positions within the community. Hundreds of up-and-coming leaders have attended the annual convention, which is moving into its fifth year in 2027.

Basil has chosen to devote much of his life to preserving and promoting his heritage through various Italian American organizations and causes, stating, “My primary motivation is to pay respect and honor to the memory of my parents and grandparents who are no longer with me.”

All of Basil’s exceptional accomplishments have been recognized by the President of the Republic of Italy, who, on Oct. 8, 2023, inducted him as a Knight of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Italy, the highest level of knighthood bestowed by the Republic.

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Basil was the founding and managing partner of the law firm Russo, Rosalina & Co. until his retirement in 2014. He served as judge of the Ohio Court of Appeals, judge of the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court (for which he received an Excellent Judicial Service Award from the Ohio Supreme Court), and majority leader of the Cleveland City Council.

In addition to the leadership positions specified above, he became the driving force behind the Bishop Anthony Pilla Italian American Studies Program at his alma mater, John Carroll University. He has spent 30 years serving as president of the Justinian Forum, an Italian American bar association representing attorneys and judges of Italian American descent. He is one of the founding members and current chairman of the Cleveland Italian Film Festival and has served as chairman of the Greater Cleveland Columbus Day Parade since 2004. Basil was also a founding member and officer of the NOIA Foundation, an Italian American organization that has raised more than $4 million for charitable purposes.

Basil and Patricia have immersed themselves in family and faith. Among other important undertakings, they have served as chairpersons of the advisory committee to the Department of Marriage and Family Ministry of the Cleveland Catholic Diocese, and as co-chairs of their diocese’s Pre-Cana program for nearly 20 years.

They are the proud parents of four children. Their daughter Gabriella is an attorney and the managing partner of Russo, Rosalina & Co. Their daughter Angela, who has taught at Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Institute of Art, is President of Creative at AGBO Studios in Hollywood. Their two sons, Anthony and Joseph, are successful directors, writers, and producers of film and television, who hold the distinction of having directed the second highest-grossing film in box office history, Avengers: Endgame.

Basil and Patricia happily spend all their free time with their 13 beautiful grandchildren.

Contact: basil@orderISDA.org

TREASURER: Prof. Santi Buscemi
Santi Buscemi, current professor of English at Middlesex County College in Edison, N.J. He is a member of the Italian American Legal Defense Fund. He is also a translator of Italian/Sicilian literature.

Contact: Sbuscemi11@comcast.net

EMERITUS Chairs:
John Alati

PAST Chairs:
Aileen Riotto Sirey
Joseph Guagliardo
Joseph Sciame
Paul Polo
John Calvelli

APPOINTED Positions:
Rosemary DeLuca – Secretary
George Bochetto – National Counsel

For more information contact us at it.am.presidents@gmail.com