Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy and the Cleveland Hungarians

Type of Abstract (select): Individual Presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy and the Cleveland Hungarians
Zsolt Máté
The Hungarians of Cleveland always been very active in the Hungarian diaspora. Their influence reached all around through the D.P. founded organizations – such as the scouts in exile or the Hungarian Assocation -, but individually as well with many personal success stories. In my presentation I will talk about letters written by Cleveland Hungarians to President Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy.
Writing a letter to the President of the United States of America is not a daily task for most of the politically active people either. But there were major events inside the community or in Hungary when some approached the leader of the leader of the chosen home. In the case of President Truman the Cleveland Hungarians acted as lobbyist to let the D.P. Hungarians in the United States faster. The communication most of the time was one directional from Cleveland to the Capital, but in case of several churches for their anniversaries or gala invitations were answered.
Dwight D. Eisenhower received the most letters from Cleveland Hungarians, due to the 1956 Hungarian revolution and the following refugee crisis. Eisenhower received telegrams and letters not just to send troops or to help Hungary, but through the Presidential Committee for Hungarian Refugee Relief dozens of job, housing, orphanage offers was addressed to him. Parallelly John F. Kennedy as a senator was approached too, because of the same purpose.



Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
I am a Pro Scientia gold medalist, two times Countrywide Scienific Student Conference (OTDK) winner PhD-student of University of Pécs. I write my dissertation about the American, Canadian, Australian governmental reactions to the 1956 Hungarian revolution and refugee crisis. I participated in conference not just in Hungary, but in Canada and in France too. I published a Hungarian-German bilingual popular science oral-history book about the 1956 Hungarian refugees in Graz. I published book reviews or articles in Századok and Múlt-kor.