LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (03/10/96)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Spirit of cooperation was predominant

Dear Editor:

The article in The Ukrainian Weekly about the Ukrainian-Jewish conference held December 3, 1995, sponsored by the Society of Ukrainian Jewish Relations, was slightly misleading and perhaps left the reader with a negative impression of the results of the conference.

The "pessimism" to which Irene Jarosewich refers to at the conclusion of her article for any future hope for Jews and Ukrainians was instigated by only one member of the audience - a young Russian gentleman from St. Petersburg, Russia (now residing in Brooklyn). This young man implied that until Ukrainians readily apologize for the actions of such Ukrainian heroes as Petliura and Khmelnytsky, there will never be any cooperation between our people.

The members of the audience (both Ukrainians and Jews) were appalled at this negativism, as the entire tone of the conference was very positive and uplifting. The purpose of this conference was not to dwell upon the past and the stereotypical images of one another, but to reflect upon the positive influences that Ukrainians and Jews have had upon each other's cultures, and to lay the groundwork for a future free of Ukrainophobia and anti-Semitism. In the conversations that transpired during the intermission most everyone agreed that these goals were indeed being accomplished at this conference.

I would like to add that the Society of Ukrainian-Jewish Relations has made great strides in the past year with the Jewish community. Evhen Stakhiv and I traveled to Ukraine in October and met with various influential Jewish leaders, including Rabbi Yaakov Bleich. Rabbi Bleich not only has learned to speak Ukrainian in the three short years that he has been in Kyiv, but teaches the children in Hebrew school Ukrainian - not Russian. And, the children are all required to sing the Ukrainian national anthem each morning. An audience of about 60 Ukrainian Jews in Kyiv warmly welcomed us into their community as we spoke of our organization's goals and promised to continue working very closely within American Jewish communities towards a new awareness and strengthening of the bonds of our two often misunderstood cultures.

Upon my return I was invited to attend a reception sponsored by the Women's Evening Group of the Park Avenue Synagogue honoring Roman Biletskij for saving the lives of 24 Jews during the Nazi occupation of Ukraine. A very receptive and enthusiastic audience of over 200 people participated. The society has received many letters of support from Jewish leaders for its work (including some who have made some disparaging remarks about Ukrainians in the past). We received a personal thank-you letter from Shimon Peres, the new prime minister of Israel, thanking us for our condolences upon the tragic death of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

In view of all of the above, it is quite clear that the general consensus in our organization's experience is that whether due to genuine enthusiasm or curiosity, there is a thirst for knowledge and a sense that a spirit of friendship and cooperation is on the horizon.

Stephanie Charczenko
New York

The writer is vice-president of the Society of Ukrainian-Jewish Relations.

We should assist Ukraine's Embassy

Dear Editor:

Dr. Larissa Fontana in her letter of February 11 addresses important issues for consideration by the Ukrainian diaspora in the United States. Among those is her insistence that the Embassy of Ukraine expand its activity by promoting Ukrainian culture, in addition to being "just a political and business arm of the government of Ukraine." She gives the cultural activities of the Embassy of Korea as a model to follow. Indeed it would be wonderful if the Embassy of Ukraine had the resources and staff to do so, but unfortunately it does not.

The Embassy of Korea has been in Washington since the end of World War II. It has been a close ally of the United States since that time. Its staff, as of August 1995, numbered 68 people. In addition to its Chancery, it owns a Chancery Annex in Arlington, Va., and two additional offices in Washington. It represents a rich and prosperous nation.

On the other hand, the fledgling Embassy of Ukraine, as of August 1995, had a staff of 24 people. (France, a country comparable in size and population to Ukraine, has 63 people at its Embassy). You can find many of the overworked and overextended staff at the Ukrainian Embassy working late most nights and on most weekends. They barely have the personnel and the resources to perform the "political and business" activities required of them.

In spite of these difficulties, the Embassy of Ukraine has not ignored cultural activities. In 1995, for example, it hosted the "Kyiv-Washington: Two Summits" photo exhibit, art exhibits by Ukrainian artists Natalia Lytovchenko (Kyiv) and Oleksander Pohrebynsky, and concerts by the Kyiv Chamber Orchestra, Juliana Osinchuk and Daria Telizhin. It helped to organize the successful U.S. tour of the Veryovka Ensemble. The Embassy has been working closely with The Washington Group's Cultural Fund and the Alla Rogers Art Gallery and has asked other organizations in the Ukrainian American community to assist it in promoting Ukrainian culture in America. I understand that it plans to establish a cultural center at the Embassy in the near future.

Until Ukraine becomes economically strong, we in the diaspora should help the Embassy of Ukraine to find other ways of expanding its activities. Many cultural events sponsored by the Russian Embassy, for example, are underwritten by American foundations and corporations. Ukrainian Americans should use their initiative to find such alternative sources of financing some of the Embassy's activities.

Lastly, I do think that we, Ukrainian Americans, who are continuously lobbying our United States government on behalf of Ukraine, have every right to make suggestions to the Embassy of Ukraine on how it could better showcase Ukrainian culture and deal more effectively with American media. I do not, however, think we have the right to "insist" on anything. After all, the Embassy of Ukraine represents the citizens of Ukraine and not the Ukrainian diaspora.

Ihor Gawdiak
Washington

The writer is director of the Washington Office of the Ukrainian American Coordinating Council.

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