It is fitting that we should reflect on a country whose independence was brutally stolen on the day that our Nation celebrates the birthdays of our great Presidents. including George Washington. father of our free and democratic government. In their forceful annexation of Lithuania. the Soviets sought to crush the flourishing economy. and rich cultural and religious community. Thousands of Lithuanians were slaughtered. thousands more were deported to Siberian labor camps. Since 1940. deportation. exile. and imprisonment of the Lithuanian people continue. The U.S.S.R. supplants this drain of people with Russian citizens in an effort to dilute Lithuanian culture. As part of the russification process. the native language and cultural heritage are suppressed.
Keywords matched
deported deportation