Magyar News, 2000. szeptember-2001. augusztus (11. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

2001-07-01 / 11-12. szám

Would you say that the dream goes on, and it doesn’t matter how the political and economical situation changes. There are two basic goals in these dreams. Let us start with the political interest. Just about a half century after signing the Constitution of these United States of America, gróf Ferenc Béldy from Transylvania, accompanied by his clerk Sándor Bölönyi Farkas chose to travel in the West. After looking around in Europe they took a 33 day trip to sail to America. They visited the big cities along the east coast, including Canada. President Andrew Jackson had a very casual meeting with them. They were impressed that they didn’t have to go through a long waiting period to see him as it would be customary in Europe. Bölönyi Farkas was a democratic minded person with a keen eye on society, and searching for new reforms within. He wrote a book about this travel and it was considered a fresh breeze of freedom. It was awarded by the Academy and praised by the two leaders of the “Americaners” in Hungary, gróf István Széchény and Lajos Kossuth. The political dream of the American Democracy was set. After the failed 1848 Revolution many of Kossuth’s men came to America. The dream was to have democracy in Hungary, probably learning it from America.

Following the Hungarian history we know that finally some of it, maybe with some distortion, reached the people in Hungary by now.

There was an other dream that the Hungarians lived by. This was about a better life. The question was how to do it. Well, the industrialization in the USA opened the door for it. The dream was for the men to come here from Hungary, make some money, go back and purchase some land to work. This sounded good and many did do exactly that. Generally speaking this was valid for just about everybody. Unfortunately life doesn’t follow the dreams. Many times to put together enough money, to be worth, might had taken longer than expected. Greed came into the picture and enough wasn’t enough. Also, sudden wealth, compared to the old country, opened the door for easy and fast spending, depleting the fund for land purchase. The support of the family was missing and people found other outlets for family connection. Bringing the family over definitely helped stabilizing the situation.

The assimilation to a new culture put people on a track where they gave up the original dream and took up living in the new community, and with new interest. Specially having children changed the original idea. The children playing with other children, using the same streets, going to school, doing what Americans do, changed the dream to the future here.

Settlements were built, communities became stronger and little Hungarys started to take place on America’s map.

The WWI put on-hold many families. On one hand, men had to take on military service, on the other hand Hungary was pushed into a war and suffered from it. Before the war, from Austria-Hungary, over two million people came to the States. After the war, from the population reduced by the Trianon Treaty, a half million Hungarians entered the US. Naturally the recession in America reduced the number to a few thousand, and the Communist Regime in Hungary cut it even below one hundred.

It is interesting to compare the emigration to Canada. Before WW I a thousand seemed to be a high number, but before recession hit, it got up to two thousand. A somewhat significant raise came with the Communist take-over.. With the 1956 Revolution twice as many came to the States as went to Canada. A couple of years after the Revolution there was a sudden influx, probably from the refugee camps that reached 60 thousand, and in Canada about half of that. By 1965 there was a change. America was stagnant at 500, while Canada was double of that.

This as a mixture of necessity and dream. Dream of freedom and dream of a better life. These numbers show that the American Dream is still alive in Hungary.

The Immigration and Naturalization Service changed the status of Hungarians into a different category now. They are not

refugees seeking asylum, very few have legitimate grounds for immigrating here. The present problem is with those who illegally overstay their visa, also they engage in working without a work permit. The dream of a better life encourages them and they take the risk of being deported or to have a reentry denied. Let us not forget that they can earn here as much as ten times of a Hungarian wage. Still the American Dream flourishes in Hungary, It did after both wars, hoping for help, during the Revolution praying for the Americans to cross the border. The dream today for the Hungarian people is very different from that of the immigrants. The immigrants were going for freedom or better life, now the people in Hungary are hoping for the American freedom and the better life to go to their country.

The American and Multi-national investors are welcome. These companies pay one eight of the wages and salaries they dish out in their original countries. They receive a ten year taxbreak when building a factory, assembly line or a research facility. Their bottom line gets better, but on the other hand every penny makes the Hungarians happy.

The dream of democracy isn’t exactly how Bölönyi Farkas witnessed it. Unfortunately many things developed along with this new freedom. One is the mistaken interpretation of rights that carries the seeds of crime. The other in my opinion is the misinterpreted free speech that could lead to destruction of values, anti community activities, and there is no end to it.

A few years ago only 22% of investing Hungarian businessmen said that in carrying on their business they consider what benefit is it to the Hungarian people. It takes time after a Communist oppression to find the proper route. It is a refreshing experience to see the Hungarian Government taking a stand, setting new laws to protect the Hungarian land that should always belong to the Hungarians. Losing banks, financial institutions, and all that goes with it means losing their stronghold in their own territory. Think about the experience of the Hungarian communities in Romania.

Our hope is that the hardworking people of Hungary will create a new dream, this time the Hungarian Dream.

Joseph F. Balogh Page 1