Fraternity-Testvériség, 1950 (28. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1950-06-01 / 6. szám
TESTVÉRISÉG Elza Jo Fodor PATRIOTISM FOR WHAT? (The “Testvériség” is happy to reprint the following article which originally appeared in the famous Boston, Mass, daily: “Christian Science Monitor”. The author is Elza Jo Fodor of Columbus, 0., a juvenile member of our Federation of long standing, and the older daughter of our good friend and member, Attorney Joseph Fodor, who for a number of years was Assistant Attorney General of State of Ohio. Brother Fodor, among his manifold duties, always finds time to work on problems of our church administration, as legal advisor of the Magyar Synod of the Ev. and Ref. Church. Elza Jo Fodor wrote this article for a graduation address when she left Barrett Jr. High School in January, 1950. She is now a 10-B student at South High School in Columbus, 0. The author delivered this well written and powerful address before the members of the American Legion, before several civic bodies and the last March 15 celebration of the Hungarians in Columbus. In the present form it was published also in the “South High Optic”, the official publication of the school.) Today when the communists are trying to gain control of the world and when in our own country the outspoken aim of this well-organized group is to overthrow our government, it is mandatory for us to understand the true significance of patriotism in a free democracy. The dictionary defines patriotism as the “love of our country”, but it is much more than that. Patriotism is our pride in our country, our respect for our flag and our constitution, our willingness to sacrifice our lives in time of war and our responsibility for keeping our country the leader of the world, not only financially but democratically. Today we have freedom of speech and religion and many other freedoms and opportunities that are peculiar to our country alone. We have the right to criticize our government and our leaders, a privilege which if exercised in Russia or behind the Iron Curtain would mean the salt mines in Siberia or outright death. Just let someone in a communist-ruled country complain that he barely earns enough to keep body and soul together. Just let him criticize the government or make suggestions on how conditions can be bettered or let him try to strike for pensions or higher wages. You may be sure that there is no protective constitution, no friendly court presided over by a Judge Medina to uphold those rights for which mankind has and still so bitterly struggles. We, on the other hand, have the privilege of griping and criticizing, of bettering ourselves. Our forbears have fought for and given us a “government of the people, by the people and for the people”. Let us not through our indifference surrender these “inalienable rights” and become “servants” instead of “masters” of our government. At the present time we can clearly see the grave dangers communism holds for our democracy, as did that outstanding leader of the European revolutions of 1848, Louis Kossuth, first President of the Hungarian Republic, who, when he visited Columbus almost a hundred years ago, in his speech before the joint meeting of the General Assembly of Ohio said: “Woe is to mankind, if a tyrant dares to trample upon the human rights, and there is no free nation to compel respect for these rights. People of the United States, the world looks to you as the guardian of the human rights of mankind.” The Reverend Endre Sebestyen, in his recent speech at Pittsburgh, Pa. at the Dedication of the Memorial Plaque commemorating Kossuth’s visit to the United States, quoted various phrases from Kossuth’s Salen, Massachuesetts speech, which demonstrate his uncanny foresight of events to come. Kossuth said: “....the aim of Russian diplomacy is to gain control of Europe, Asia and the Mediterranean while the United States sleeps ... to line up all Europe against the United States.... beware of being left along to fight the entire world.”
