I think of two Soviet refusenik families. Oscar and Shelley Mendeleev and their two sons Gregory and Valery. and Itimma and Evgeny Yakir and their son Alexander. When Oscar Mendeleev first applied for exit visas for himself and his family in 1973. his request was rejected because of secrets which authorities alleged he had been exposed to in a previous job. lie was subsequently fired from his job as an elec. tronics engineer and has been unable to secure anything but parttime and menial jobs since that time. Shelly Mendeleev. a pediatrician. has also been unable to find employment commensurate with her training and abilities. In their continuous quest for permission to emigrate to Israel. the Mendeleevs face disappointment and harassment. Soviet au. thorities continue to use the pretext of secrecy for preventing Oscars emigration. al. though more than 15 years have passed since he left the alleged "classified" position. Oscar has been threatened with arrest and longterm imprisonment. and has spent 2 weeks in prison for idleness. a situation precipitated by his lack of steady employment. The Yakirs have also been seeking permission to emigrate to Israel since 1973. Like the Mendeleevs. their Initial request was rejected on grounds that IRimma. a computer engineer. had had access to state secrets. Rimma lost her job. eventually finding work as a cleaning woman.
Keywords matched
emigrate emigration visas