From Refugee to the First Female President of Latvia | Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga
Where to find the show
iTunes | Spotify | Google Play | Deezer | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | TuneIn | RSS Feed
Download Episode MP3 File
The file will open in a new window. Click down arrow to download the file.
“Everybody deserves freedom, and everybody deserves a choice of how they are governed.”
SHOW DESCRIPTION
Location: Riga
Date: Friday, 31st January 2020
Company: Latvia
Role: Former President
In the wake of the Second World War and the Soviet expansion into the Baltic states, Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga and her family fled Latvia for a German refugee camp. From there, the family moved to Morocco before emigrating to Canada in 1954.
Vaira went on to gain a PhD in psychology and became a professor at the University of Montreal. She taught psychopharmacology, psycholinguistics, scientific theories, experimental methods, language and cognitive processes.
Throughout this successful career, Vaira remained fiercely loyal to her Latvian heritage and in 1998, aged 60, she decided to return to her home country to head a new Latvian Institute. Within eight months of returning, Vaira became Latvia’s first female President.
She was a hugely popular and successful President, and at one point her approval ratings were as high as 85%.
In this interview, I talk to Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga and discuss how her family fled Latvia, her life in Canada, returning to become President of Latvia and Russia’s influence over the Baltic states.
SUPPORT THE SHOW
The success of Defiance will be largely down to the support of you, the listener. Below are a number of ways you can help:
Subscribe to the show on your favourite app so you never miss an episode:
Leave a review of the show on iTunes (5* really helps, if you think the show deserves it).
Share the show and episodes out with your friends and family on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Follow Defiance on social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
Subscribe to the Defiance mailing list.
Donate Bitcoin here: bc1qd3anlc8lh0cl9ulqah03dmg3r2uxm5r657zr5p
If you have any questions then please email Defiance.
TIMESTAMPS
Coming soon…
SHOW NOTES
Connect with Vaira:
Mentioned in the show:
BBC: Brexit: All you need to know about the UK leaving the EU
BBC: Scottish independence: Could a new referendum still be held?
Wikipedia: 2003 Latvian European Union membership referendum
Wikipedia: Soviet re-occupation of Latvia in 1944
Wikipedia: Latvia–Russia relations
Fair Observer: Is the Latvian Government About to Settle the “Russian Issue”?
BBC: Russia threatens sanctions over Latvian language in schools
LA Times: Latvia, with a large minority of Russians, worries about Putin’s goals
NPR: A New Law In Latvia Aims To Preserve National Language By Limiting Russian In Schools
The Guardian: Baltic states no longer a bridge between east and west, says Latvia
The Associated Press: Ethnic Russians have big influence in Latvian election
THANK YOU TO MY SPONSOR
Kraken - the best place to buy, sell or trade Bitcoin.
