• Issue 7, September 1999 • Volume 23 •
Vytautas Landsbergis:
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Heathers JourneyHeather Jorge with an introduction from Jeanne
Dorr Departments. . .REFLECTIONS
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The 1831 Revolt against the Czarist government resulted in tremendous losses for the Lithuanians in the forms of land, freedom, and education. Intense Russification began. From the primary schools to the institutions of higher learning, education in the Lithuanian language was stifled or abruptly ended. Educating youth would only "confuse their minds". Even publishing books in the Lithuanian language was forbidden. Lithuanians found ways to circumvent this system and began to publish books in other countries, smuggling them in under the veil of night. "Vargo Mokyklos" or secret schools were becoming the norm in many villages and small cities. These operated as present day home schools do. Mothers working at their spinning wheels taught their children and sometimes neighbors children. Other families hired teachers who had been fired simply because they were Lithuanian. Educating youth continued even in the direst of circumstances. Source: Lithuania 700 Years by Albertas Gerutis New York; Manyland Books, Inc.; 1969 |
On the cover:
A country scene from the village of Rumšiskės, Lithuania.
Photo by Bernard Narušis
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