Skip to content
Call Us Today! 212-533-4646 | MON-FRI 12PM - 4PM (EST)
DONATE
SUBSCRIBE
Search for:
About Us
Publications
FAQ
Annual Report 2023
Annual Report 2022
Annual Report 2021
Initiatives
Advocate
Educate
Cultivate
Care
News
Newsletters
Sign Up For Our Newsletter
Join UNWLA
Become a Member
Volunteer With Us
Donate to UNWLA
Members Portal
Calendar
Shop to Support Ukraine
Search for:
Print
Print Page
Download
Download Page
Download Right Page
Open
1
2-3
4-5
6-7
8-9
10-11
12-13
14-15
16-17
18-19
20-21
22-23
24-25
26-27
28-29
30-31
32-33
34-35
36-37
38-39
40
The resolution passed despite these observations, specifying an international need to make the family a priority, to identify and work to defeat societal ills with a negative impact on the family, to encourage govern ments to educate their respective citizens on the value of the family unit, and to encourage those same govern ments to foster programs aimed at supporting the family structure in ways that would ensure human rights and individual dignity to all family members. This, continued Ms. Kurowyckyj, was a difficult agenda as it first re quired an acknowledgment that “family” is a term which occasionally defies definition. She pointed out, as an example, the traditional view of family as illustarted by the American artist Norman Rockwell and by American television programs like “Father Knows Best”, which portrayed a mythical family unit in which father worked, mother was the homemaker, children were obedient and clean and pliable, and the family dog was a friendly, tail- wagging addendum that completed a picture perfect structure. Citing a statistical analysis of the American family, Ms. Kurowyckyj indicated that the “traditional family unit” in the United States currently represents only 10% of the population and that not even in these traditional families is the mythic TV/Rockwell family a reality. She continued this theme of family definition from an international perspective, citing cultures in which women are expected to bear sons and must endure successive pregnancies to meet this obligation if the first children born are daughters, cultures where female children are so despised that they are routinely aban doned or even killed, and cultures in which women are routinely abused and denied any right to make deci sions affecting their own lives. Within this context, Ms. Kurowyckyj turned to the particular concerns of Ukrainian American families, emphasizing that the family unit in the diaspora, while not subject to the horrific conditions she had previously described, are not immune from problems. “Our prob lems,” she pointed out, “stem from the responsibility of maintaining a family unit within two worlds. We want our children to be a part of their heritage-and~we want them to succeed and thrive as members of the American community.” She indicated that this is not an easy task for parents to achieve and even more difficult for the children. “There is so much competition for their atten tion”. On a more positive note, she commented that given the inherent difficulties, the Ukrainian American family is a remarkably successful entity. Ms. Kurowyckyj’s reflections on Ukrainian families in Ukraine itself were not as sanguine. She discussed the U. N. conference in Malta during which the Interna tional Year of the Family was formally initiated in Octo ber 1993, citing a speech by Natalia Savchuk on the dis integration of the Ukrainian family, a speech which focused on socio-economic problems, on a high abor tion rate, and on a high infant mortality rate — all old problems which had been deliberately hidden by a government embarrassed to acknowledge conditions and statistics associated with Third World countries. Ms. Kurowyckyj added that these problems were exacer bated by the high rate of alcoholism among Ukrainian men and by the self-effacing attitude of many Ukrainian women. Ms. Kurowyckyj also indicated that the Ukrainian family’s well-being is contingent on the path taken by Ukrainian women, that they must organize not only on a national level, but must learn to recognize the benefits of becoming active participants in international women’s organizations. She stressed that there is a need for women from Ukraine to see and hear women from other countries and other cultures and that it is equally impor tant for them to become visible in their own right, citing personal and even economic benefits that could be derived from such contact. Counting on this issue, Ms. Kurowyckyj briefly dis cussed the ICW’s Plenary Council Meeting held in Paris in June 1994 and the International Conference on Popu lation and Development recently held in Cairo, confer ence attended by Ukrainian women from Canada and the United States who were representing their respec tive adopted countries. She lamented the fact that other Eastern Europen countries somehow manage to send delegates to such conferences while Ukraine does not. Reiterating her previous opinion on the Ukrainian wom an’s self-effacing attitude, she added that the attitude of Ukrainian men is a further obstacle to the goal of mak ing Ukrainian women a vocal and visible component of the international women’s movement. She cited a recent conversation with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Udo- venko during which she had expressed her hopes that delegates from Ukraine would be participating in the Fourth World Conference on Women which will take place in Bejing in 1995. Mr. Udovenko’s response was, “Our women won’t go. What would their husbands do?” Following Ms. Kurowyckyj’s lecture, members of the audience discussed the issues which had been raised, several suggesting positive steps which might be taken to sponsor delegates from Ukraine at future inter national conferences. The program was formally closed by Ms. Rakowska and guests were invited to enjoy the refreshments prepared for the event by Branch 90 members.
Page load link
Go to Top
1 
2-3 
4-5 
6-7 
8-9 
10-11 
12-13 
14-15 
16-17 
18-19 
20-21 
22-23 
24-25 
26-27 
28-29 
30-31 
32-33 
34-35 
36-37 
38-39 
40 
