Reaction of the Lithuanian press in the US to the closure of The Union for the Liberation of Vilnius in Lithuania

Abstract

Based on the US Lithuanian press and archival documents, this article aims to shed light on the reaction and aspirations of the émigré community upon learning of the closure of a public organization, “The Union for the Liberation of Vilnius”, in Kaunas. The ideological currents of Lithuanians in the US (Catholics, nationalists-unionists, socialists, and communists) were greatly stirred when, on November 25, 1938, under pressure from Warsaw, the Lithuanian government was forced to close the Union for the Liberation of Vilnius. The information from Kaunas reached the émigré community a week later. Newspapers of all ideologies, even the communist “Laisvė” and “Vilnis”, with the exception of the socialist “Keleivis” and “Naujienos”, expressed sympathy and indignation towards Poland. It is noted that Catholic, communist, and socialist publications, in keeping with tradition, took the liberty of criticizing the Lithuanian nationalist government for making concessions to Poland and for its inability to preempt the ultimatum. At the same time, however, patriotic émigré newspapers – nationalist, unionist, and Catholic – promoted the idea of not forgetting the Vilnius issue and transferring the defense of Vilnius to the United States. The decision of the Lithuanian Catholics on December 15 in Pittsburgh to conduct the campaign for the liberation of Vilnius through the American Lithuanian Roman Catholic Federation (ALRKF) branches, as had been done before, angered the Lithuanian nationalists in the US, who understood that the Catholics did not want to work together on the Vilnius issue. Lithuanian diplomats sensed that this could happen and made efforts to overcome the attempt to monopolize the liberation of Vilnius. To this end, the idea of creating a new organization – “The Vilnius Union” – was even raised.