LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (09/03/00)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Ethnic tensions and wise decisions

Dear Editor:

What a sharp contrast between the August 20 column by Myron Kuropas and an earlier report (March 26) by Roman Woronowycz, concerning the rededication of the Great Synagogue in Kyiv. In the latter report we learned of the growing efforts Ukraine is making to confront the contemporary role of its once-largest historical minority, and in the former we read a distinctly wary account of an issue that has long been recognized by scholars of Jewish history.

While the Mr. Kuropas may feel that it is valuable to revive the question of the disingenuous aims of some Holocaust historians and activists, his examples are noticeably overstated: the veracity of Binjamin Wilkomirski's "Fragments" was in question from the date of its publication in 1995, and Jerzy Kosinski's "The Painted Bird" was published as a work of literary fiction - not as an autobiographical memoir, despite having later earned this reputation.

As is indicated in his closing passage, Dr. Kuropas has reservations about the so-called "Holocaust industry," and he is certainly not alone. But it is remarkable that he should be so uncomfortable about the prospect of Ukraine's eventual involvement in commemoration or restitution. Memorials, museums and memoirs have made enormous gains in educating the public and humanizing what has often been a historically divisive issue (the recent efforts of Germany and Poland serve as good examples), and they can play a potentially important role in healing on both sides of the equation in Ukraine, if we only allow them. In a country where few residents of interwar Jewish descent remain and to which Jewish visitors rarely travel, such acts of commemoration seem to be the only acceptable gesture; as many readers will recognize, they also have secondary benefits, often pointing the way to the economic revival of formerly Jewish districts, as has been the case in Krakow in recent years.

A final word of caution concerning the author's regrettable choice of title "Holocaust exploitation," hardly appropriate for a newspaper of this standing: we who find ourselves at the geographic and historical center of considerable ethnic tension need to make wise decisions in representing our culture, learning to tread gingerly on delicate terrain such as this, rather than approaching it with the casual disregard with which we are sometimes charged.

Nicholas Sawicki
Philadelphia

Thanks for helping to save Verkhovyna

Dear Editor:

The Ukrainian Weekly deserves commendations and thanks for its centerfold featuring a pictorial report on the UFA-sponsored 25th anniversary Ukrainian Youth Festival (July 23) and especially for the editorial "Save Verkhovyna" (August 6).

This is what fraternalism is all about: brotherly love and providing aid when the occasion calls for it.

Yes, the Ukrainian Fraternal Association is mandated by the Pennsylvania Insurance Department to sell Verkhovyna.

As reluctant as they were, UFA leaders finally took the steps and unanimously voted to sell the resort to the Ukrainian American Cultural Foundation. This group of dedicated Ukrainians has been working for three years to raise the sum needed to buy Verkhovyna. Each year the UFA convention and then the Supreme Council extended the date of passing, each time assuring the Insurance Department that the buyers are legitimate and will have the needed financing.

However, after all the passing times, the Insurance Department said this is it - no more extensions.

The foundation, recognizing the deadline of the situation, agreed to a date, September 1, and the Pennsylvania Insurance Department was so notified.

All UFA officers and hundreds of UFA members, including the UFA's senior auxiliary, were the first to donate substantial sums to start the fund-raising.

The rest is up to the Ukrainian community. The Weekly's editorial amply described the value of this "Ukrainian Village" in Glen Spey, N.Y.

If all the past Ukrainian dance students of Roma Pryma Bohachevsky, Sitch sports campers, and lovers of the Ukrainian Youth Festival make a modest donation, Verkhovyna will remain in Ukrainian hands. If not, it may become a sad chapter in our community history.

On behalf of all who love Verkhovyna, many grateful thanks to The Ukrainian Weekly for its help in trying to save Verkhovyna.

Joseph Charyna
Stoughton, Mass.

The letter-writer is an honorary member of the UFA Supreme Council.

Phone service truly beneficial

Dear Editor:

Last March, while working as assistant bus driver and groupie for the Kharkiv theater ensemble "Arabesky" during its U.S. tour, I met George Stromeckyj in Chicago. He was pitching a long distance telephone service, and my first reaction was: not another phone service!

But George was offering something else: a percentage of his company's profits from long distance calls would go to support The Ukrainian Weekly. His rates looked pretty good, so I signed up with Mr. Stromeckyj's Sputnik Global Communications right there in Chicago.

Now, after five months of using the service - to call Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Poland, even Canada - I can say that the service is reliable, without hidden charges and very competitive. I have also used the company's phone card and access number to make calls from Poland and Germany, and the service was equally good. (European hotels rival some American ones when it comes to shocking surcharges on calls from rooms, so Sputnik's plastic card was a money saver.)

This is service and convenience. And every time I make a call, it feels good to know that a few pennies will end up in The Weekly's piggy bank.

R.L. Chomiak
Washington

The Ukrainian Weekly welcomes letters to the editor and commentaries on a variety of topics of concern to the Ukrainian American and Ukrainian Canadian communities. Opinions expressed by columnists, commentators and letter-writers are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of either The Weekly editorial staff or its publisher, the Ukrainian National Association.

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