From Displaced Persons to Exiles: Nationalism, Anti-Communism, and the Shaping of Latvian American Diaspora
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From Displaced Persons to Exiles: Nationalism, Anti-Communism, and the Shaping of Latvian American Diaspora A Dissertation SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA BY Arta Ankrava IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Lisa Sun-Hee Park June 2016 © Arta Ankrava 2016 Acknowledgements I would like to express my appreciation for the guidance and encouragement of many inspiring people within academia and beyond, who have helped me grow as a part of various supportive communities. Thank you, first of all, to my advisor, Lisa Sun-Hee Park, for her continued, generous support throughout my time at the University of Minnesota. I would also like to thank my other committee members, Cawo Abdi, Ron Aminzade, and Jean Langford, who have been the sources of great feedback and always- approachable support. Beyond this, I would like to extend my thanks to the whole Department of Sociology, as well as the Immigration History Research Center (IHRC), especially Donna Gabaccia and Erika Lee, and the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at the University of Minnesota, particularly Alejandro Baer, for heading vibrant, stimulating, and welcoming institutions for an international scholar with an interest in migration and identity. The generous support I have received from the Department of Sociology, the American Latvian Association Graduate Fellowship in Latvian American Studies at the IHRC, the Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, awarded by the Graduate School, as well as other types of support from University of Minnesota institutions and beyond, has made this research project, as well as participation in international conferences and courses, an enriching and generative experience. A special thanks to the IHRC for being an unparalleled multi-disciplinary, boundary-pushing space for scholars of migration, and absolutely formative to my experience at this university. Thank you to the staff, current and past, for continued help and guidance during lengthy spans of archival research. Thank you to the American Latvian community for supporting my project through generous funding. Thank you to colleagues, fellow students, graduate and undergraduate, who along amazing professors across different departments at the University of Minnesota and elsewhere, have pushed my imagination, introduced me to new ideas and perspectives, and encouraged to think across disciplines in seminars, workshops, conferences, and informal conversations. Finally, thank you to my husband, parents, and the rest of my family and friends for encouraging me to pursue my interests, and remaining supportive throughout. Liels paldies! i Abstract This dissertation explores the shaping of the Latvian American exile from temporary settlement in Displaced Persons (DP) camps in post-war Europe, to resettlement to the U.S. following the DP Act of 1948. Specifically, Latvian diasporic discourses of nationalism, transnationalism, and anti-Communism are analyzed through the lens of Latvian-language exile periodicals. These are conceptualized as a transnational space, a locus of intersection of diasporic, national and hybrid, and sometimes competing identities. Building on archival research conducted at the Immigration History Research Center, University of Minnesota, the project uses newspaper articles to identify the variety of discourses present in major diasporic periodicals and draws out points of contention as well as agreement on the shaping of the Latvian nation both pre and post USSR dissolution. The dissertation’s main goal is to explore how the Latvian American exile community was shaped by the Cold War, and how Latvia as nation was imagined and re-imagined in diasporic press. Through secondary source analysis of Vietnamese refugee experience later in the twentieth century, this project also aims to question notions of “exile” and “refugee” as such, and interrogates how they were used in relation to different Cold War era anti-Communist immigrant groups to the U.S. Finally, the dissertation also addresses post-USSR collapse Latvian identity politics, including exile and homeland relations, as well as suggesting avenues for future research. ii Table of Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................... iv Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................... 1 Background ..................................................................................................................... 6 Structure .......................................................................................................................... 9 Chapter 2: Data and Methods ....................................................................................... 11 Legitimacy Through Print ............................................................................................. 11 The Periodicals .............................................................................................................. 18 Comparison with Other anti-Communist Immigrants .................................................. 29 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 31 Chapter 3: Latvian-Language Publications in Austria: Managing the Ambivalence of Being a DP ................................................................................................................... 36 UNRRA DP Camps: A New Deal ................................................................................ 38 Tightrope Walking: Managing Ambivalent Positions .................................................. 48 Constructing Assimilable Bodies .................................................................................. 70 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 80 Chapter 4: Exiles and Refugees: Comparing Latvian and Vietnamese Experiences 83 Problematizing “Refugee” and “Exile” ........................................................................ 85 DP vs. Refugee Camps ............................................................................................... 108 “No Longer Faceless, Distant, Anonymous” .............................................................. 115 Youth in Revolt ........................................................................................................... 119 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 135 Chapter 5: Latvian Exile and Homeland in the 1990s .............................................. 140 Belonging and Citizenship: Inclusions, Exclusions .................................................... 141 Fathers and Sons of the Nation ................................................................................... 157 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 168 Chapter 6: Conclusions and Recommendations for Further Research ................... 173 A Unique Type of Nationalism ................................................................................... 173 Conclusions ................................................................................................................. 177 Recommendations for Future Research ...................................................................... 187 Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 190 iii List of Figures Figure 1: Front page of Issue 1, Latviešu Balss Austrijā [Latvian Voice in Austria], 10/29/1945. ............................................................................................................... 33 Figure 2: Front page of Issue 30, Latviešu Balss Austrijā [Latvian Voice in Austria], 5/26/1946. ................................................................................................................. 34 Figure 3: Front page of Issue 5, Baltiešu Ziņas Austrijā [Baltic News in Austria], 3/29/1949. ................................................................................................................. 35 Figure 4: Image from "Atskaņas par tālkvizu nr. 1 [Reflections on Quiz #1]." 1976. Jaunā Gaita [New Course] 21 (109): 64-66. .......................................................... 139 Figure 5: Front page of Issue 49, Latvija Amerikā [Latvia in America], 12/7/1991. .... 172 iv Chapter 1: Introduction On May 4, 1990, the Supreme Council1 of the Republic of Latvia voted on the issue of reinstating the country’s independence from the USSR. The Soviet Union had started to crumble in the 1980s and there were swelling nationalist currents in many of its republics, including Latvia. While the population of Latvia organized in marches, demonstrations, emergent political parties, and cultural events highlighting Latvian culture, there was a considerable Latvian population abroad, also following the events, getting involved, and working tirelessly towards Latvian independence. Mostly refugees from WWII and their descendants, the Latvian exiles in the U.S. and other countries in the “free world” published periodicals, met with politicians, sent aid to the homeland, and engaged in other activities in order to help the process along. The reestablishment of Latvian independence