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OUR LIFE M O N T H L Y , published by Ukrainian National W o m en s League of America Vol. XXVII. JUNE, 1970 No. 6 Travellers, Note! It has become the “in” thing for Ukrainian-Americans to tra vel in Eastern Europe and espe cially in Ukraine. The urge is un derstandable: people are inter ested in the country where the roots of their culture lie. The same holds true for other Amer ican ethnic groups. But while Irish Americans may, if they feel so inclined, see their country in all its splendor and its misery and come back feeling that they really saw it, we Ukrainians can not feel certain of it. The differ ence lies in the fact that the gov ernment of the Soviet Union has created a very closely controlled society. Visitors are shown only certain aspects of Soviet life which the government feels will leave a favorable impression. Such restrictions, which are termed “guided-tours,” annoy some visitors, who are used to freedom of movement in their country. But there are some, who would rather be guided. Bohdan Ihor Antonich A NIGHT IN ST. GEORGE’S SQUARE The midnight is as black as coal. A shadow prowls St. George’s Square, Whose streaks in hoops and circles twist Upon the grey walls gleaming there. The moon is a mysterious ring Encased in ebonies of night. Beneath the welkin's frigid roof You feel that frost is in its light. And you yourself cannot be sure What things are real, what but seem, Whether a fancy mocks your eye Or facts as cunning as a dream. Where tuneful towers are of glass, The fire is cool and speaks derision: It is the limit of the world, The architecture of a vision. The midnight hour as black as coal Spills on our eyes the ash of sleep, And as the sky to earth still clings Adorns it with a silver sweep. Night echoes in St. George’s Square; The cross is like a mighty key. And like a gloomy shadow seems A future yet unknown to me. Translated into English by C. H. Andruseshyn and Watson Kirckonnell Mostly these are Americans, who know neither Ukrainian nor Russian and would feel lost in the strange country. Often they return highly enthused about life in the Soviet system. While we do not suggest that anyone should visit Ukraine sim ply to look for what is wrong with life under Communism, we must point out certain facts. It is generally admitted thaLliving standards are lower in Eastern Europe than in the U.S.A. This is also true in much the rest of the world. The traveller must learn to look beyond those living stan dards (which can be smugly ex plained as due to the destruction of the war) and notice unmis takable signs of Russian discri mination or downright persecu tion of other cultures in the So viet Union. This discrimination has little or nothing to do with Communism. Ideology serves only as a cover-up. Thus, under the guise of fighting against the evils of religion, the Russians have managed to ruin most of our churches, which were truly architectural and historic land marks. Some of them were turn ed into warehouses, some de stroyed. Some were burned down under mysterious circum stances, along with museums and libraries containing priceless his toric documents. Old icons from Ukrainian churches are dumped into a damp cellar and no one is permitted to study or even to view them. All this while a col lection of Russian icons is mak ing a well advertised tour of the world. Or consider this: There must be a number of shrines dedicated to the memory of the Russian poet Pushkin alone, places where he lived and worked. The same is Видання C оюзу Українок A мерики - перевидано в електронному форматі в 2012 році . A рхів C У A - Ню Йорк , Н . Й . C Ш A.
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