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OUR LIFE M o n th ly , p u b lis h e d by U k ra in ia n N a tio n a l W o m e n ’s L e a g u e o f A m e ric a VOL. XLIV NOVEMBER 1987 Editor: Marta Baczynsky ROSALIE POLCHE "THE RIGHT TO BE PROUD (A d d r e s s d e liv e r e d a t X X I C o n v e n t io n , 1 9 8 7 ) As an American by birth, and equally proud of my Ukrainian heritage, I feel privileged to be a member of this panel and to be able to share with all of you my feelings of patriotism for the country in which I was born, and for Ukraine. My parents, in their pursuit of freedom and eco nomic security, came to these shores during the early wave of immigrants in 1912. The comedian Sam Leven- son once said: “When my immigrant father came over from the old country, he found out 3 things: (1) that the streets were not paved with gold; (2) that most of the streets were not even paved; (3) that he had to pave them.” This was also true of our Ukrainian pioneers for the road before them was a rocky one. As a child, my parents instilled in me their love for Ukraine and made me aware of the trials and tribula tions of Taras Shevchenko, Ivan Franko, and Lesya Ukrainka. All this I absorbed while learning other cultures. I believe that every Ukrainian American has an inherited responsibility to preserve his or her ethnic identity. Thus, as a teenager, I became actively engaged in the activities of the Ukrainian Civic Center, an organ ization of young girls of Ukrainian parentage which met at the International Institute of the local YWCA in New York City. As the name implies, the International Insti tute catered to many ethnic groups and the UCC planned programs such as our traditional “Sviat Vechir” and “Sviachene.” I also became a member of the Ukrainian Youth League of North America, a group of men and women of Ukrainian descent from a cross-section of the coun try. It was our aim to educate the public through cultu ral programs that we were able to preserve our fore fathers’ customs and traditions and, at the same time, serve our communities with the enthusiasm and vigor of true Americans. As the years progressed, the one organization I especially wanted to join was the Ukrainian National Women’s League of America, mainly because of my mother who was a pioneer member. She was my role model and her reports of the work the organization was doing inspired me greatly. The Ukrainian National Women’s League of Amer ica, a wholly independent woman’s organization, is endowed with a firm base of established ideals and values which appealed to me. Coupled with creativity, leadership, tenacity, and flexibility, these characteristics have allowed the UNWLA to consistently step forward. A pioneer on both international and local levels in pro viding financial assistance, scholarships, medical aid, and social services, their endeavors have made their mark in various parts of the world. In existence for more than 60 years, much has been achieved in these and other areas of concern, but there is still more to be done as I found in my recent trip to Ukraine. How proud and sad I felt at the moment I placed my flowers at the gravesite of Taras Shevchenko to the strains of his famous “Testament” coming over the sound system. Vivid memories of my childhood and all that I had learned about the great Bard came to mind. In my visits to Ternopil and Kiev, I especially noted the intense russification and suppression of all that is Ukrainian. The number of hours devoted to the teaching of Russian in the educational institution from primary schools to university levels are steadily increasing. Their intention is to indoctrinate the pupils to read Russian literature and to promote the publication of scientific works in Russian. The Ukrainian language has been relegated to a secondary status and eventually to eradication. Since language is a strong national identity, I would urge those who do not know Ukrainian to learn the language no matter what your age bracket, and to foster the study of our language. By all means, encour- 22 НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, ЛИСТОПАД 1987 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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