Ukrainians in North America: An Illustrated History

Myroslav Shkandrij is an associate professor of Slavic studies at the
University of Manitoba.

Events of the last few years have been a watershed in Ukrainian history.
In 1991, almost exactly 100 years after the mass emigration to North
America commenced, an independent state was formed in the Ukraine. This
history chronicles the successive waves of Ukrainian emigration to North
America and takes stock of immigrant achievements over this century. By
focusing on generational differences, the author is able to explain many
of the ideological and cultural fissures that have divided the
community, as well as to plot the gradual evolution of new attitudes in
the diaspora. Two resonant themes are handled deftly: the battle between
traditionalists and those wishing to adapt to North American traditions,
and the struggle between left and right.

This history has been covered in greater detail elsewhere, but the
parallel development of the American and Canadian accounts brings to the
story a revealing comparative perspective. The usefulness of this
becomes particularly apparent in two places: first, when the author
discusses the Transcarpathian–Galician feud, with its implications for
the American Ukrainians; and second, when he recounts the attitudes of
the American public, media, and government toward the immigrants (the
FBI investigations of the early 1940s, the Walter Duranty episode, and
the “war criminals” scare were generated by a political dynamic
considerably different from the one that operated in Canada).

This is a large-format book, with numerous illustrations culled from
various archives and interspersed with quotations taken from newspapers
or from the desiderata of organizations. It contains an index, a short
bibliography, and a useful guide to abbreviations. The chronicle
synthesizes a great deal of information, while the voices one hears in
the quoted passages preserve for the reader a sense of the inner
tensions and the dynamism that have characterized a fragmented,
passionate, and energetic community over several generations. As a
popular history, the book aims at balanced commentary and attractive
presentation—it achieves both admirably.