New York honours oldest Lithuanian diaspora organisation

A plaque honouring the Lithuanian Alliance of America (Susivienijimas Lietuvių Amerikoje), the oldest Lithuanian diaspora organisation, was unveiled over the weekend in central Manhattan, New York. The group has been active for more than a hundred years. Its building has received historic landmark status, which is both an honour and a degree of protection against demolition.

The organisation was founded in 1886 by Jonas Šliūpas, a doctor, publisher and political activist. It first assisted Lithuanians arriving in the United States and later became a hub of Lithuanian culture. It bought the Manhattan building in 1910.

Help for newcomers

Lithuanians who had just left their ships could get help with paperwork, life insurance and accommodation, as well as a train ticket to their first home in America. Many were ready to work in Pennsylvania's coal mines or Chicago's slaughterhouses.

Remarks at the ceremony

Dovydas Špokauskas, Lithuania's consul general in New York, said news about heritage, especially in America, is often bad or worrying, but this time it was certainly a good day.

Lisa Kersavage, chair of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, which granted the status, noted that the Lithuanian-American press was also born in the building. A printing press operated there and helped preserve Lithuanian-American culture and language. She added that her grandmother came from Lithuania to America alone as a child, so the occasion meant a great deal to her.

Carl Wilson, a member of the New York City Council, said that at a time when relations between the city, the country and immigrants are tense or even threatening, and many immigrant communities feel unsafe, it is important for New York to take such steps. He said the city is honouring what immigration, and Lithuanian immigrants in particular, mean to it.