New book focuses on Ukrainian women in history (03/13/05)

New book focuses on Ukrainian women in history

by Zenon Zawada
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - It was 1973 when Iryna Senyk stood before a Soviet prosecutor, accused of "anti-Soviet agitation with the goal of overthrowing Soviet authority."

Incensed by her defiance, the prosecutor demanded that she recite a verse from her poem, written in Russian and addressed to "tovarish."

"It's Siberia where you would see 'father's home' all around you / Millions locked up, doomed to starve / Where spines are bent for years, under the master's laughter," Ms. Senyk said from memory.

With that, the prosecutor tacked on an extra year to what became an 11-year prison sentence. A wonderful price, Ms. Senyk retorted.

Such stories of strength, sacrifice and devotion to Ukraine are abundant in a new book, "Ukrayinky v Istoriyi" (Ukrainian Women in History) released by Lybid publishers of Kyiv.

The day after International Women's Day, March 8, which is celebrated here as a national holiday, First Lady Kateryna Yushchenko joined women from Ukraine and the diaspora in unveiling the book before hundreds gathered in Kyiv.

"I think in the last few days women have received many gifts," Ms. Yushchenko said in Ukrainian. "However, I can frankly say that this book was the single best present because this is a gift that will last many years. I think this book opens a new world for me and my children."

Printed in large, legible letters and replete with artwork and photographs, "Ukrayinky v Istoriyi" is a 326-page hardcover text that contains the biographies of 63 women who had a significant influence on Ukrainian society.

What unites the women selected for the book is their love for Ukraine - their love for their land, love for their culture and love for Ukraine's traditions, Ms. Yushchenko said.

"I'm happy that in Ukraine we are finally opening the pages to our history that were once closed," she said.

Valentyna Borysenko, the book's chief editor, said it's not the first such book about women. However, its editors collected those events that were forgotten in the Soviet era, she said.

"To understand your fatherland and your people, you must comprehend and know its history," Ms. Borysenko said.

Reaching as far back as Princess Olha, the first leader of Kyivan Rus' to accept Christianity, the book reveals the lives of Ukrainian women throughout the centuries, as well as those still active today.

Avoiding ideals of radical feminism commonplace in Western culture, the book focuses on Ukrainian women devoted to their Church, their nation, their family and their loved ones.

The work also extends beyond their professional and historical accomplishments, illuminating the diverse personal lives and struggles of the heroines.

It mentions Princess Olha as striving to preserve the memory of her deceased husband, Prince Ihor. Readers are allowed a peek at a love letter to Ms. Senyk from her "one and only love" who died in battle.

The ideal Ukrainian woman does not want to be a slave, nor a vamp, nor an amazon, said Olena Teliha, the 20th century nationalist, describing the roles women were expected to play in her time. She wants to be a woman of equal worth and in union with men in their struggle for life and for their nation, said Teliha, who was killed by the Nazis at Babyn Yar.

Women should seek their civic roles working alongside men, and not by creating their own "women's world" by locking themselves in tight feminist organizations, she believed.

Ms. Yushchenko admitted she was a bit ashamed that she was not even aware of some of the women featured in the book.

However, many of the women are not well known, she said, and it's noteworthy "that for those names that were familiar, we now know more about them."

Among those women most overlooked are scientists and mathematicians who managed to excel in fields that were, for the most part, male.

"At the end of the 1950s, I already worked with computers in America," said Nataliya Danylenko, who is credited with the idea for the book.

"But, you know, in 1942 in Ukraine, Ukrainian women were already writing computer programs. We must promote Ukrainian women not only in various arts, but also female scientists," she said.

One such woman was another Kateryna Yushchenko, who is of no known relation to President Viktor Yushchenko. Ms. Yushchenko was an exceptional mathematician and cyberneticist who in 1966 earned the first Soviet doctorate in mathematics through studies of computer programming.

Ukraine's first lady praised the efforts of Ms. Danylenko, a diaspora Ukrainian who said she had worked for 20 years to make the book a reality.

"If every person had been as devoted to Ukraine and loved Ukraine as much as Pani Nataliya, we would have achieved this freedom and independence many years back," Ms. Yushchenko said.

The book is a footbridge between Ukraine and the diaspora, andl serves to connect the two communities, Ms. Danylenko said.

Diaspora biographies include poet Natalya Livytska-Cholodna, who lived in New York City, and translator and literary leader Anna-Halya Horbach, who lived in Munich.

After speeches and musical performances, Ms. Yushchenko signed books thrust in front of her by the crowd wanting to get her autograph.

The book's editors were clearly excited that Ms. Yushchenko was able to endorse their work, and the event had clear political overtones.

"It's the biggest miracle that today we have such a worthy president, Mr. Viktor Yushchenko," Ms. Danylenko said to loud applause.

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