UKRAINIAN INTERWAR IMMIGRATION IN СSR AND UKRAINIAN IMMIGRANTS’ BAD HABITS (1921-1939)

Abstract

Tobacco smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse, coffeemania didn’t bypass the Ukrainians of the second (political) immigration wave, who found themselves on the ground of the interwar Czechoslovakia (СSR). Cigarettes, beer, vodka, morphine and coffee were in the focus of the Ukrainian immigration community’s representatives’ attention due to the scientific discoveries during the interwar period. Rapid development of the Czech automotive and aircraft industries, permanent advertising in newspapers and magazines caused fashion for smoking. Unlike the Czech men, who smoked «Marlboro» and «Camel» (sold on the territory of the Czech Republic since 1904) and the Czech women who preferred «Winston», the Ukrainians smoked cheap local «Vlasta» (known since 1916) because of the lack of money. The excessive use of draft beer and vodka was equally harmful for the Prague residents of the Ukrainian origin. Tapped beer together with traditional snacks were usually served in so called ‘yards’. “Flekovka” (a sort of dark beer) and «Staropramen» (a sort of light beer) were available, and the Ukrainians chose «Staropramen». In general beer was consumed for pleasure (even though with the last bit of money). On the contrary, drinking vodka was caused mostly by the psychological state of the Ukrainians. As for such dangerous habit as drug abuse, fortunately, it was not typical for the immigrants of the Ukrainian origin during the interwar period. Doing opium, morphine and cocaine was the most common habit for the Russian immigration. At the beginning of the ХХ century opium, morphine and cocaine were freely sold in pharmacy chains. For example, laudanum was prescribed to treat insomnia and diarrhea; powder-like heroin was taken in the case of bronchitis, asthma, tuberculosis, depression; laudanum was also considered to be a sedative for children; white crystals of morphine were used as a painkiller. Those drugs were listed in the register “certified financial statements” only in 1927 in Europe and in 1929 in the Czech Republic. The inhabitants of СSR of the Ukrainian origin were more interested in “Nescafe” instant coffee which became popular in 1938. During that period of time instant coffee was an innovative and cheap drink. It was rather important for immigrants because natural coffee cost a lot. Moreover, coffee in shops was sold together with milk chocolate or condensed milk, which psychologically made the life sweeter.