Amerikai Magyar Szó, 1985. július-december (39. évfolyam, 27-48. szám)
1985-09-26 / 36. szám
15. AMERIKAI MAGYAR SZÓ Thursday, Sep. 26. 1985. huNqARÍ AN - amerícan roots GENE PERLSTEIN ART FOR THE MASSES 1911-1917 A RADICAL MAGAZINE AND ITS GRAPHICS That's the title of the exhibit. Readers of Magyar Szó probably remember the New Masses of the twenties and thirties and may wonder how come the Whitney Museum is showing a review of a radical publication. The answer is: Don't ask questions go see it. The Masses brought together a talented group of artists, writers and intellectuals. The staff worked without pay. They were glad to have the opportunity to express themselves without the restrictions of the establishment. Max Eastman was the editor. The collective board included names like John Reed, Floyd Dell, John Sloan, Art Young, etc. They pioneered new techniques in printing, art tones and writing. Their whole approach had a sense of humor and irre- verance that you wouldn't expect in those days. There is a section of non political that inspired the following immortal lines. They draw nude women for the Masses Denude fat ungainly lasses. How does that help the working classes? Chances that Hugo Gellert does't know that two of his covers are included in the exhibit. Circulation never went higher then 25.000. However, the magazine ceased publication in 1917. The Post Office revoked its mailing licence because they were critical of World War I. They took the government to court and in a trial that achieved notorierity because Art Young fell asleep in the courtroom, they won. They were too late to restore the mail. The exhibit is at the Whitney Museum, Park Ave and 42nd St. across the street from Grand Central Terminal. It will be there until October 3. (Organized by the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven.) COKE DATA Engineers from Budapest Technical University have developed a microcomputer- based process control system for the new $200 million coking plant being built at Duna Ironworks, Dunaújváros. The system will provide production control and data storage for the plant, which will produce 1,3 million tons of coke a year. Some years ago, an American writer, A. Haley, touched a sensitive spot for his people with his description of the "Roots" of American blacks and their contribution to the rich cultural history of Africa. Our country and all its people developed a greater, deeper and truer understanding of the manifold sources of the our growth. The American people felt better for its experience with "Roots". Too much of our recorded history relates only in a very superficial way to the real roots of American society. The force of Solidarity reminds some politicians that coal miners in Pennsylvania have Polish sounding names because grandparents came from Poland generations ago. In October a trace of Italian geneology identifies one with Columbus and St. Patrick's Day is the occasion for being Irish. Most of what our parents and grandparents brought to the United States went through an Anglo-Saxon meat grinder before producing a "real" American hamburger. The English, Dutch, French and others were here before us and they made the definition. The true native Indians weren't allowed to provide even a leavening for the dough to rise. But the real "America Singing" in the words of Walt Whitman were the mechanics, carpenters, the masons and the boatmen, the shoemaker and hatter and all the others from all parts of the world. With their skills and labors came their poets and styles, their hopes and dreams and all the rich history and culture of the lands they left behind. Some fled foiled revolutions. Some sought to escape poverty. Others escaped military draft and religious persecution. The trauma of leaving behind parents and siblings who might never again be seen must have been a heavy weight to carry on the Atlantic crossing deep in the holds of great steamships. The language of commuSelf-drive car rentals in USSR may be an included item for individuals and groups according to an announcement by Russia Tours, a subsidiary of ITG International Travel Groups. Cars may be rented for as little as $12.- per day plus gas and mileage. ITG president Guido de Görgey, who has been active in travel to the USSR for over 20 years says that although he would not recommend extensive self-drive touring, driving between Moscow and Leningrad is possible and would prove to be a highly interesting experience. "One-way rentals are available and this means that a person could take a car from Moscow, drive the 400 miles to Leningrad, and leave the car there," De Görgey said. ITG says one of its fields of expertise is making special arrangements for touring the Soviet Union and that it does this at low prices. Costs are especially attractive, De Görgey says, when combining Russia with neighboring Eastern bloc countries. "We find this kind of travel enables us to quote especially good air fares." ITG says that an F.I.T. to Russia has great advantages over simply buying a nication so familiar to them in the old country was made to seem a badge of dishonor in the new land. Customs which were a regular part of living yesterday suddenly branded them as "aliens", "greenhorns" in the new life. But roots dig deep into the ground and make it possible for the tree to stand tall. Roots cannot be cut off as one might shed a jacket. And so, the culture did not really die. It grew new roots and intermingled with many others. America did not spring full grown from the soil of America. Ghettoes emerged for some because it made the transition more comfortable. Language based societies - even trade union locals - helped the newcomer to adapt. But it also preserved cultural elements. Of course, negative factors were part of the whole. Italian- Americans were still being lynched in the early part of this century. Polish and Hun- garian-Americans were herded to the election booths like so many sheep by some of the worst political machines in our history. But immigrants learned the art of voting - and living in America. All this and much more become part of the national fabric. The generations which followed extended the tap root accross the face of the U.S. Each added its own dimension. Some weighed heavily; others lightly, on the course of American history. We cannot allow the knowledge of these roots to leave our consciousness. To truly understand America we must understand its people and the life of its people. This is especially important now that so many of our antecedents are departing this life. We must dig deep to the roots and follow those roots to the present. We must compile a record - one which can yet be given by our parents and grandparents - and one which we must pass on to our children. Hark the voice of Walt Whitman and Petőfi and Neruda and Jose Marti and we will all "Hear America Singing". ready-made package. "This is a once-in- a-lifetime trip for most Americans and the tailor-made vacation can add immensely to the enjoyment of the experience without any tremendous additional cost." Anti-apartheid song: Bruce Springsteen, Miles Davis, Pat Benatar, Bonnie Raitt, Jimmy Cliff and about 30 rock, jazz and reggae Artists United Against Apartheid hope to raise consciousness as well as money for the South African anti-apartheid movement. Their joint song, Sun» City, written by ex-E Street Band guitarist Steve Van Zandt, makes political statements about President Reagan's policies, South African repression and Sun City, the BENATAR blacklisted entertainment complex in that country. Several versions of the song, which includes excerpts from speeches by Bishop Desmond Tutu, will appear in mid-October. Record royalties benefit the Africa Fund for families of political prisoners. Sel£-drive car trips to the Soviet Union
