Union and League of Romanian Societies in America, Inc. records

The Union and League was established as the result of a merger of two early Romanian American fraternal societies. In 1906 the "Vulturul" (Homestead, Pennsylvania), and the "Carpatina" (Cleveland, Ohio) were united under the Consolidation Act of the Union of the Romanian Beneficial and Cultural societies. Initial resistance, especially by the League of Romanian Beneficial and Cultural Societies was overcome, and the organizations merged under the present name in 1928. These organizations played an important part in development of Romanian American churches, parochial schools, and press. In the 1990s and early 2000s, two key events took place that incited tension amongst the various branches and led to the dissolution of several societies. In 1997, Jack Moga, acting on behalf of the Union and League, sued three officers of the ‘Carpatina’ branch, specifically Alex, Suba, Mabel Barsan and John Coman. In 2002, Cristian Calugarita, the president of ‘Viitorul Roman’ sued the remaining members of the branch’s executive committee over false membership documentation. In that same year, Georgeta Washington, the national president of the Union and League, excommunicated the branch. These litigations, coupled with conflicts over tax claim reports, splintered relationships amongst various branches and tested the Union and League’s economic standing.