Ukrainian community in the United States and the Ukrainian question during the First World War

Abstract

The article discusses the activities of ethnic Ukrainians in the United States, directed at solving the Ukrainian question at the time of the First World War and the postwar settlement in the Paris Peace Conference. The attention is focused on uniting Ukrainian social and political organizations in the United States to help their historical homeland and interaction between the Ukrainian diaspora and the US government and society, involving them to help the Ukrainian people. The author stresses that the theme of data research is conditioned by difficult test for the Ukrainian nation during the First World War. Ukrainians were deprived of their own state, were divided by border of Russian and Austro-Hungarian empires which oppressed them and eventually forced to fight in their armies on opposite sides. The Ukrainian nation, that was involved in the World War not with its will, needed material and financial assistance, and lobby of national interests among the authorities of the most influential countries in the world on the international arena. In these circumstances, the activity of the Ukrainian diaspora in North America, particularly in the USA, that have made a significant contribution to the Entente victory in the World War I and to the postwar settlement, requires special consideration. Author’s tasks allow to illuminate chosen theme of the publication objectively and to reveal the development of scientific research in this field.

Keywords

• ukrainian diaspora
• the united states
• the first world war