Samantha Smith

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Samantha Reed Smith (29 de junho de 1972 – 25 de agosto de 1985) foi uma menina estadunidense de Manchester, no Maine, chamada de "a mais jovem embaixadora dos EUA" e "embaixadora da boa-vontade" na União Soviética durante sua curta vida. Ela ficou famosa nos dois países depois de escrever uma carta ao então secretário-geral do Partido Comunista da USSR Iúri Andropov durante a Guerra Fria, e recebeu uma resposta do próprio Andropov que incluía um convite pessoal para visitar a União Soviética, que ela aceitou. Acompanhada pela mídia nos dois países, ela participou de atividades pacifistas no Japão^[1] depois de sua visita à URSS, escreveu um livro e atuou num seriado de TV até morrer prematuramente num acidente de avião.

[editar] Biografia

[editar] Infância

Samantha Smith nasceu em Houlton, no Maine, e morou lá com os pais, Arthur e Jane, até os oito anos. Ela gostava de praticar hóquei, andar de patins, ler e estudar ciências, além de jogar no time de softball de sua escola. Com cinco anos de idade, ela escreveu uma carta para a Rainha Elizabete II, dizendo que a admirava. Em 1980, quando Samantha acabara de terminar a segunda série, a família se mudou para Manchester, onde ela estudou na Escola Primária de Manchester. Seu pai era professor de literatura e redação na Universidade do Maine em Augusta, e sua mãe trabalhava como assistente social com o Departamento (secretaria estadual) de Serviços Humanos do Maine em Augusta.

Mais tarde, Jane Smith descreveu como aconteceram os eventos que mudariam a vida de sua filha: depois que Iúri Andropov se tornou dirigente da URSS, os principais jornais e revistas estadunidenses publicaram a foto dele nas capas, com matérias um tanto quanto negativas sobre e expectativas pessimistas quanto às "ameaças" que sua ascensão representava à paz mundial. Durante este período, houve diversas manifestações anti-nucleares na Europa Ocidental e na América do Norte, e havia expectativa para o filme de televisão The Day After ("O Dia Seguinte"), da ABC, sobre a vida após uma hecatombe nuclear provocada por uma guerra deflagrada entre as duas superpotências. O presidente dos EUA, Ronald Reagan também esboçara o conceito de détente, e ordenara a instalação dos mísseis de cruzeiro e Pershing II na Europa Ocidental. A União Soviética estava envolvida na Guerra do Afeganistão havia três anos, o que contribuía para a tensão internacional. Foi uma matéria de capa da revista Time (provavelmente da edição de 22 de novembro de 1982) que chamou a atenção de Samantha. Ela teria então perguntado à sua mãe: "Se as pessoas estão com tanto medo dele, por que alguém não escreve uma carta para ele perguntando se ele vai provocar uma guerra ou não?", ao que Jane teria respondido: "Por que você não faz isso?".

[editar] Carta e resposta

Em novembro de 1982, quando Samantha estava na quinta série, ela escreveu para Andropov, tentando entender por que as relações entre a URSS e os EUA estavam tão tensas:

"Dear Mr. Andropov,

My name is Samantha Smith. I am ten years old. Congratulations on your new job. I have been worrying about Russia and the United States getting into a nuclear war. Are you going to vote to have a war or not? If you aren't please tell me how you are going to help to not have a war. This question you do not have to answer, but I would like to know why you want to conquer the world or at least our country. God made the world for us to live together in peace and not to fight.

Sincerely,

"Samantha Smith"

Tradução:

"Caro Sr. Andropov,

Meu nome é Samantha Smith. Tenho dez anos de idade. Parabéns pelo seu novo emprego. Eu tenho estado preocupada se a Rússia e os Estados Unidos vão entrar em uma guerra nuclear. O senhor votará para que haja uma guerra ou não? Se não, por favor diga-me como o senhor vai ajudar a não haver uma guerra. O senhor não precisa responder esta pergunta, mas eu gostaria de saber por que o senhor quer conquistar o mundo ou pelo menos nosso país. Deus fez o mundo para nós vivermos juntos em paz e não para brigarmos.

Sinceramente,

"Samantha Smith"

A carta foi publicada no jornal soviético Pravda e, em 25 de abril de 1983, a menina recebeu a resposta de Andropov:

Dear Samantha,

I received your letter, which is like many others that have reached me recently from your country and from other countries around the world.

It seems to me – I can tell by your letter – that you are a courageous and honest girl, resembling Becky, the friend of Tom Sawyer in the famous book of your compatriot Mark Twain. This book is well known and loved in our country by all boys and girls.

You write that you are anxious about whether there will be a nuclear war between our two countries. And you ask are we doing anything so that war will not break out.

Your question is the most important of those that every thinking man can pose. I will reply to you seriously and honestly.

Yes, Samantha, we in the Soviet Union are trying to do everything so that there will not be war on Earth. This is what every Soviet man wants. This is what the great founder of our state, Vladimir Lenin, taught us.

Soviet people well know what a terrible thing war is. Forty-two years ago, Nazi Germany, which strove for supremacy over the whole world, attacked our country, burned and destroyed many thousands of our towns and villages, killed millions of Soviet men, women and children.

In that war, which ended with our victory, we were in alliance with the United States: together we fought for the liberation of many people from the Nazi invaders. I hope that you know about this from your history lessons in school. And today we want very much to live in peace, to trade and cooperate with all our neighbors on this earth—with those far away and those near by. And certainly with such a great country as the United States of America.

In America and in our country there are nuclear weapons — terrible weapons that can kill millions of people in an instant. But we do not want them to be ever used. That's precisely why the Soviet Union solemnly declared throughout the entire world that never – never – will it use nuclear weapons first against any country. In general we propose to discontinue further production of them and to proceed to the abolition of all the stockpiles on earth.

It seems to me that this is a sufficient answer to your second question: 'Why do you want to wage war against the whole world or at least the United States?' We want nothing of the kind. No one in our country – neither workers, peasants, writers nor doctors, neither grown-ups nor children, nor members of the government – want either a big or 'little' war.

We want peace — there is something that we are occupied with: growing wheat, building and inventing, writing books and flying into space. We want peace for ourselves and for all peoples of the planet. For our children and for you, Samantha.

I invite you, if your parents will let you, to come to our country, the best time being this summer. You will find out about our country, meet with your contemporaries, visit an international children's camp – 'Artek' – on the sea. And see for yourself: in the Soviet Union, everyone is for peace and friendship among peoples.

Thank you for your letter. I wish you all the best in your young life.

"Y. Andropov"

[editar] Sucesso internacional

A media circus ensued, with Smith being interviewed by Ted Koppel and Johnny Carson, among others, and with nightly reports by the major American networks. On July 7 1983, Smith flew to Moscow with her parents, spending two weeks as Andropov's guest. During this trip she visited Moscow and Leningrad, and spent some time in Artek, the main Soviet pioneer camp in the town of Gurzuf on the Crimea peninsula. Although Andropov, who was already seriously ill, did not meet her, they spoke by telephone. Smith wrote in her book that in Leningrad she and her parents were amazed by the friendliness of the people and by the presents many people made them. Speaking at a Moscow press conference, Smith declared that the Russians were "just like us".

In Artek she chose to stay with the Soviet children rather than take separate accommodation offered to her. For ease of communication, teachers and children with fluent English were chosen to live in the building where she was lodged. Staying in a dormitory with nine other girls, Smith spent her time swimming, talking, and learning Russian songs and dances. She made many friends there, including Natasha Kashirina from Leningrad, who spoke English fluently.

Imagem:Journey to the Soviet Union.png

Samantha Smith's book cover

Media followed her every step — photographs and articles about her were published by the main Soviet newspapers and magazines throughout her trip and after it. Smith became widely known to Soviet citizens and was well regarded by many of them.

When Smith returned to the U.S. on July 22 1983, her arrival was celebrated by the people of Maine and her popularity continued to grow in her native country. She became a political and peace activist, hosting a children's special in 1984 for Disney about politics, where Smith interviewed several candidates for the 1984 presidential election, including George McGovern and Jesse Jackson. She went to Japan with her mother, where she met with Yasuhiro Nakasone, the Prime Minister of Japan, and attended the Children's International Symposium in Kobe. In her speech at this symposium she suggested that Soviet and American leaders exchange granddaughters for two weeks every year, arguing that a president "wouldn't want to send a bomb to a country his granddaughter would be visiting".^[1] Her trip inspired other exchanges of child goodwill ambassadors, including a visit by Soviet child Katya Lycheva to the U.S. Later, Smith wrote a book called Journey to the Soviet Union and took on an acting role, co-starring with Robert Wagner in a television series called Lime Street.

[editar] Morte e funeral

On a return flight from filming a segment for Lime Street in the summer of 1985, Smith's plane missed the runway of the Lewiston-Auburn Regional Airport in Auburn, Maine airport by 200 yards and crashed, killing all aboard (six passengers and two crew), including Smith and her father. Much speculation regarding the cause of the accident circulated afterwards. An investigation was undertaken in the USA and the official report, which did not support any conspiracy theories, was made public. As stated in the report, the accident occurred at about 22:05 EDT, the ground impact point located one mile south-west of the airport, at 44°02′22″N, 70°17′30″W. The report goes on to say, "The relatively steep flight path angle and the attitude (the orientation of the aircraft relative to the horizon, direction of motion etc.) and speed of the airplane at ground impact precluded the occupants from surviving the accident." The main point of the report was that it was a dark and rainy night, the pilots were inexperienced, and an accidental, but not uncommon and not usually critical, ground radar failure occurred. The plane used for the fatal flight was a Bar Harbor Airlines Beechcraft 99.

Samantha Smith foi velada por cerca de 1.000 pessoas em seu funeral em Augusta, no Maine, including Vladimir Kulagin of the Soviet Embassy in Washington, who read a personal message of condolence from Mikhail Gorbachev. President Reagan sent his condolences to Samantha Smith's mother, writing,

"Perhaps you can take some measure of comfort in the knowledge that millions of Americans, indeed millions of people, share the burdens of your grief. They also will cherish and remember Samantha, her smile, her idealism and unaffected sweetness of spirit." [1]

[editar] Homenagens

Imagem:Samantha Smith portrait.jpg

Retrato de Samantha Smith por Robert Shetterly

[editar] USSR

The Soviet Union issued a commemorative stamp with her likeness. A diamond, a cultivar of tulips and of dahlias, an ocean vessel, and a mountain were named in Smith's honour, and a monument to her was built in Moscow. "Samantha Smith Alley" in Artek was named after her in 1986.^[2]

When Soviet astronomer L. I. Chernykh discovered asteroid 3147, she named it 3147 Samantha.

[editar] EUA

A mãe de Samantha Smith fundou a Fundação Samantha Smith em outubro de 1985, para promover intercâmbios de estudantes entre os EUA e a URSS até 1995. The first Monday in June of each year is designated as Samantha Smith Day^[3] by the law of Maine and there is a statue of Samantha Smith near the Maine State Museum in Augusta, which portrays Smith releasing a dove, while a bear cub is resting at her feet. The bear cub represents both Maine and Russia. A Washington State elementary school was also named after Smith. At the University of Maine, an apartment-style dorm is named after her.

[editar] Rússia

After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the extensive coverage by the Russian media of all events related to Samantha Smith stopped. The monument built to her in Moscow was stolen by metal thieves in 2003. However, some interviews with her mother Jane Smith were published in Russian newspapers in the early 2000s and many people in Russia still remember her fondly. In 2003 Valentin Vaulin, a retiree from Voronezh, built a monument to her without any support from the government.^[4]

[editar] Dinamarca

Em 1985, o músico dinamarquês Per Nørgård wrote the viola concerto Remembering Child in memory of Smith.

[editar] Notas

Notas de rodapé

↑ ^1,0 ^1,1 Samantha's address to the Children's Symposium 1983 December 26. Página visitada em April 25, 2006.
↑ Chronicle 1980s. ICC Artek. Página visitada em April 11, 2006.
↑ Samantha Smith Day. Maine law. Página visitada em April 11, 2006.
↑ Predefinição:Ru iconVoronezh Retiree Built A Monument to Samantha Smith. Voronezhsky Telegraph. Página visitada em June 1, 2006.

Livros

Smith, Samantha, Smith, Arthur (1985). Journey to the Soviet Union, 1st, Boston and Toronto: Little Brown and Co.. ISBN 0-316-80176-3.
Galicich, Anne (1987). Samantha Smith: A Journey for Peace. Minneapolis: Dillon Press, Inc.. ISBN 0-87518-367-0.