Vito Anthony Marcantonio (December 10, 1902 – August 9, 1954) was an Italian-American lawyer and democratic socialist politician. Originally a member of the Republican Party and a supporter of Fiorello LaGuardia, he switched to the American Labor Party. He was on the far left of the American political spectrum, and was nationally known for his support from Communists in the 1940s.
Representing East Harlem, New York City, which had many ethnic Italians and Puerto Ricans, Marcantonio was extremely popular. He spoke both Spanish and Italian. He was elected to numerous terms in the House of Representatives from the 1930s until his defeat in the 1950 election.
An Italian American, the son of an American-born father with origins in the region of present-day Basilicata and an Italian-born mother, Marcantonio was born in the impoverished Italian Harlem ghetto of East Harlem, New York City. He attended the public schools there, and eventually graduated from New York University with a law degree.