We wish to congratulate the Anglo-Belarusian Society on reaching an amazing milestone – its 70th anniversary!
Established with the aim of “diffusion, interchange and publication of knowledge relating to the Belarusian people, their land, history and culture”, the Society has become a lasting hub of Belarusian studies with a brand recognised far beyond the British Isles. It has provided a platform and support for prominent scholars in Belarusian studies and researches of Belarusian culture, such as Guy Picarda, Vera Rich, Arnold McMillin, Jim Dingley, Bishop Ceslaus Sipovich, Fr Alexander Nadson, Peter Mayo and others, who have built a substantial and varied body of English-language scholarship about Belarus.
During the Cold War, the Society convincingly demonstrated to the world that Belarus was not a faceless grey chunk of the Soviet Empire hosting Russian tanks and nuclear rockets but a land of rich culture, long history and its own national identity. Now, when the reborn “Evil Empire” is once again seeking by all available means to erase the identity of the Belarusian and Ukrainian people, falsify their history and appropriate their culture, the original mission of the Anglo-Belarusian Society remains as important as ever.
The Society and the Francis Skaryna Library have collaborated closely for many decades, with many prominent ABS members being the library’s founders, trustees, major contributors and curators. This collaboration continues today, and we hope will last for many years to come. Today we celebrate all the great things the Society has accomplished and look forward to all that’s to come.
The trustees of the Francis Skaryna Library and Museum
