Last week, Barletta was bowled over when he opened an envelope sent by Vento, owner of Geno’s Steaks in south Philadelphia. Inside was a check for $10,000, by far the largest contribution the city’s legal defense fund.
“You could definitely say that’s a lot of cheesesteaks,” Barletta quipped.
Lou Barletta knew Joey Vento wanted to help. But the Hazleton mayor didn’t realize just how much.
Vento said he made the generous contribution because he agrees with the mayor’s effort to rid Hazleton of illegal immigrants.
“I’m definitely on the same page with the mayor,” Vento said. “We could be brothers; we think alike, and I’m proud to stand next to him.”
Last summer, Vento, 66, drew criticism for posting a sign in his famous cheesesteak shop that read: “This is America. When ordering please ‘speak English.'”
A third generation American and descendant of Italian immigrants, Vento said today’s immigrants are coddled more than his parents and grandparents.
“These people don’t want to assimilate. They don’t want to learn our learn language,” Vento said. “Why are the Spanish people so privileged that they have the choice of Spanish or English wherever they go? My father went to school and there was no choice. He had to learn English.”
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