Being Hungarian in America: 37 interviews about the current state of the Hungarian diaspora and its future prospects in North America (Book)

Type of Abstract (select): Book Presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
Our family moved from Budapest to the United States in 2022 because of my husband’s job. Being a freelance journalist, I quickly started conducting interviews with Hungarians living in New Jersey and later on across North America about their past and present, the joys and difficulties of their daily lives, the preservation and transmission of their cultural heritage – providing a broad picture of the current state of the Hungarian diaspora and its future prospects in North America. Thirty-seven of these interviews were selected for inclusion in the first volume of my book titled Being Hungarian in America. The list of selected pieces include interviews with former or current leaders and representatives of various Hungarian (Catholic and Reformed) churches and associations (Hungarian scouts, weekend schools and summer camps, clubs, folk dance and folk traditions groups); as well as with a businessman and a Hungarian radio executive, the latter also being the publisher of the book. The perseverance and active community involvement of Hungarian Americans – guaranteeing the survival of their communities – can serve as a multiple role model, inspiration and affirmation for all of us. Their life stories are not only interesting and valuable, but also offer an authentic Hungarian American chronicle of the various waves of immigration, as well as proof that the only guarantee of survival is the preservation and cultivation of the Hungarian language, the culture and the traditions both at the family and at the community level, as well as the close cooperation between the Hungarian American organizations.
The presentation will be in Hungarian.


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Ildikó Antal-Ferencz has a degree in economics, worked as a tax consultant. In 2016 she repositioned herself as a freelance journalist, focusing on family matters, but regularly covering cultural or civic societal issues (life protection, charities, faith, education, disabilities). She is an author or co-author of several books, hosted radio programs, round table discussions and conferences, and appeared on television programs in Hungary. She has been living in the US since 2022 and authored close to a hundred interviews and articles about the Hungarian diaspora in North America and released the first volume of her book Being Hungarian in America’.