From Czechoslovakian Peasants to American Ladies: Folk Art as a Tool of Emancipation in the USA

• In Event: Eastern European Emigrants and (Self-)Liberation: National Emancipation and Personal Freedom in Polish and Czechoslovak Discourses Abroad

Abstract

One way of connecting with the homeland for Central European diasporas in the USA was via performing traditions and folk culture. The paper focuses on the way Czech and Slovak emigres, and women especially, used folk art as an emancipatory tool to increase their visibility and confidence in American society and among other European and non-European minorities.

Author

• Marta Filipova, Masaryk U (Czech Republic)