"Taip man, sese, padėk...": pirmosios lietuvių moterų draugijos Jungtinėse Amerikos Valstijose

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Amerikos lietuvių kultūros archyvas; Jungtinės Amerikos Valstijos (United States of America; JAV; USA); Lietuvių moterų draugija; Moterų draugijos; Seserystė; Viešoji erdvė; American Lithuanian Cultural Archive; American Lithuanian Cultural Archives, public space; Lithuanian women society; Sisterhood; United States of America; Women's societies.

ENThe article presents a few of the first Lithuanian women’s societies in the United States. Material for the article and data were gathered at the American Lithuanian Cultural Archives (ALKA) in Putnam, Connecticut, USA. Although the early Lithuanian women’s societies in America were primarily relief organizations, the article emphasizes that in the long run, women’s societies began to take care of each other as well. The main goals of such organizations were education, Lithuanian upbringing, caring for the sick, supporting children, and providing women with the possibility to have their own funds. Therefore, such societies also acted as “banks” or credit unions. Quite often a women’s society would have its own flag and a distinctive sign (a badge, scarf, or cape) that women wore during holidays, strolls, and performances, as well as during the funerals of their members. The statutes, founding documents, and protocols of these societies highlight aspects that preceded feminist thinking and actions. First of all, one can note that there were many literate women among the Lithuanian emigrants of the late 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries. Another important point is that women, taking an example from male organizations of that time, were interested in forming exclusively female societies in a foreign country. Moreover, they ran them as public organizations, thus stepping outside of a private house and entering the public space. The archival documents of the first Lithuanian women’s societies in the U.S. testify to the modernization of women’s consciousness, most likely affected by the late 19th and early 20th century women’s suffrage movement in the U.S. The movement fought for women’s rights and stood up against violence. By examining the early Lithuanian women’s societies, it is possible to trace a movement towards this new consciousness.The image of a new woman is related to a freer expression, participation in proactive endeavors, feminine solidarity, and commitment to “sisterhood” and “friendship among women.” It was precisely in these societies that a woman as an active and creative individual was introduced. [From the publication]