The Eighth Tribe, 1979 (6. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1979-02-01 / 2. szám
Page 10 THE EIGHTH TRIBE February, 1979 DR. ÁGNES HUSZÁR VÁRDY: ‘•ETHNIC CONSCIOUSNESS AND CONTACTS WITH THE MOTHER COUNTRY” One of the most crucial questions confronting Hungarian - Americans today (especially those varied groups that left Hungary after World War II) is the kind of relationship they should nurture with present-day Hungary. Should they close their eyes to positive developments that took place in the course of the past decade and continue their attack and criticism of Hungary? Should they reject all contact with the mother country by refusing to attend programs and lectures by writers, poets, and scholars coming from Budapest, who — in most instances — are not “sent” by the government, but are invited by individuals (such as Sándor Pöski of New York and Mihály Tar of Toronto), or by universities (Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, Columbia University, etc.) Or should they make an effort to acquaint themselves with the country of their origin and with its living culture, while also renewing old contacts and making new ones? This question of contacts with Hungary is very touchy and controversial within the Hungarian-American community, and the views and approaches of individuals are greatly diversified. Every individual’s, group’s, or organization’s attitude has its legitimacy, and therefore every view — no matter how radical or conservative should be treated with respect. I for one, am one of those who favors contacts with Hungary, and seeks to de-emphasize that which divides us. My views are based on years of meditation and on numerous and protracted exchanges with Hungarians living in Canada, Westenrn Europe, and Hungary, as well as the surrounding lands of Austria, Czechoslovakia, Roumania and Yugoslavia. No matter where we happen to live, and no matter whether we are first, second, or third generation ex-Hungarians, we should all “extenuate the positive,” that is, we simuld emphasize those points that unite us, while glossing over our differences. After all, the twentieth century has been most unkind to our small nation, dismembering its territory and population with the Treaty of Trianon (1920), throwing millions of Magyars under foreign rule and forcing hundreds of thousands to emigrate. Hungary also had to suffer through two world wars that took their heavy toll, and as a result, our nation was severed from her traditional place in Central Europe and bound to the Eastern Block instead of the Western World. Today, only little over ten million Hungarians reside in the mother country, while approximately five million live in the neighboring states and in the West. It is only natural that these greatly varied political, social, economic and cultural environments have produced immense differences; yet, there is one irreversible factor that unites Hungarians all over the world: their common roots. A fond attachment toward Hungarian culture, history, literature, folklore, and music, a curiosity to learn more about the customs of the land and ts people, and a desire to spread and to promote everything that is valuable and at the same time Hungarian, should be a common bond between us all. Several writers, poets, and many Hungarians from different walks of life have expressed views similar to the above, A poem, that is especially appropriate and expresses poignantly what it means to be a Hungarian in our modern day and age, was written by György Radó of Budapest, a noted translator of literary and poetical works, a literary historian and a bibliographer. Dr. Radó and his actress wife visited Canada and the United States in May and June of 1977. He was invited to lecture at a conference in Canada sponsored by the International Translators' Association. Following the conference, he presented several lectures on Endre Ady to Hungarian audiences in Montreal, Toronto and Niagara Falls, while his wife recited selections from Ady's poetry. At the invitation of Josephine Thorpe, President of the Association of Professional Translators of Pittsburgh, Dr. Radó also spoke at their bi-monthly meeting at Carnegie-Mellon University. It was his Canadian and American trip and his contact wth Hungarians living abroad that inspired the following poem. As he wrote in February of 1978: “It was already in May of 1977 in Toronto and Montreal'’ — when together with my wife we appeared in front of Hungarian-Canadian audiences to speak to them about Ady, and later in Niagara Falls when approximately two hundred Hungarians gathered in Petőfi Hall, with two hundred pairs of eves looking at us, and our national anthem '"Isten áldd meg a Magyart (God hless the Magyars! resounding from
