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OUR LIFE M O N T H L Y , published by Ukrainian National Women's League of America Vol. XXXV JUNE 1978 No. 6 EDITORIAL We are confronted with one more document which has been passed on from the Mordovian camps to the Western world. The following are short but eloquent excerpts from this "Samvydav”: ”We Inform you of the organization of the first chapter of The B rotherhood for the D efense of the Ukrainian language, and for the defense of conditions favorable for m aintaining Its purity and continued use. "The status of the Ukrainian language at all levels of political, socio-econom ic, academ ic, cultural and reli gious life Is catastrophic. ’’The Constitution of the USSR does not designate Ukrainian as a national language and is not favorable to its developm ent... We bring to your attention that the Brotherhood was created under conditions existing in a specifically severe concentration cam p.” O sadchy, Rebryk, Romanluk, Tychy, Yevgrafov Novem ber 1977 C oncentration Cam p for Political Prisoners Sosnovka, Mordovia Neither miles nor kilometers adequately illustrate the great distance involved in transmitting this notification from the camp in Mordovia to the West. It had not taken the normal communications route of post, plane or radio, but was passed hand-to-hand on the secret and dangerous byways traveled by a ’’Samvydav”. However, even the dangerous route is not sufficient to delineate the great gulph between those who created the Brotherhood and us who read about the event. We must imagine the conditions and circumstances in which the organizers subsist. We must realize and remember that the creation of the Brotherhood and notifying the world of its existence threatens them with additional persecution. And we must become aware of our own circumstances: not only our material well being, but also our freedom of though and deed. It is then that the distance seems even greater, and the news seems to have come from a different, somber and evil world. Often we are moved by news from ’’over there”, awed by the attitude of our countrymen — especially if they are imprisoned — and we admire them. On almost all appropriate occasions we send them beautifully worded greetings in which we insist that our hearts and thoughts are with them. We fervently applaud passionate speeches, and wipe away tears when we hear of the latest physical and psychological tortures. And then sighing we proceed with the banquet. Possibly our appetites have been strengthened by emotion: moved, we may even drink to the health and good fortune of our brothers. We are ready to donate funds for the aid of po litical prisoners. Outraged, both young and old demonstrate and conduct hunger strikes in protest against persecutions in Ukraine. This is our proof of solidarity with all whg resist in Ukraine. All of this is necessary and beneficial, but... If we had a scale which measured action in relation to its generating environment, how would we and our actions compare to those on the other side?This scale would have to include terror, fear and additional humiliation for creating such a Brotherhood. With this scale we would have to measure our lifestyles, and our freedom of action, as in learning and cultivating the Ukrainian language. We understand and respect those older Ukrainians who never had the opportunity to learn to speak the language fluently, but who, nevertheless, maintain the Ukrainian spirit and work tirelessly in the community. We gladly cooperate with them. However, when battle is joined for the life of a language, when that language is degraded and without protection, we cannot place all responsibility for its defense on those who themselves are unprotected and degraded. Let us consider our youth. They all have the opportunity to learn and use the language. Although many like to sing Ukrainian songs and dance traditional dances, few show interest in work that requires consis tent action. Instead of encouraging the use of our language, we hear many requests to communicate exclusively in English, to increase the English section of ’’Our Life” ... so that the young can understand. It is in deed notable that at the XVII UNWLA Convention a respected member, whose family has lived in America for a few generations, requested that the designation "English-speaking Branches” be changed to "Bilingual Branches”. If our language was not threatened in Ukraine, we could remain indifferent to the speech and written habits of our youth. However, notice of the creation of the Brotherhood for the Defense of the Ukrainian Language is grim warning to young and old that the most distinctive attribute of our people — their language — is in danger of destruction. Let us utilyze all opportunities in good faith to learn and maintain our native language. How shall we answer our brothers in Mordovia and Ukraine? Translated by Chrystuna Bilynsky НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ, ЧЕРВЕНЬ 1978 19
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