Thomas Sgovio
Encyclopedia
Thomas Sgovio was an American artist
, ex-Communist
, and former inmate of a Soviet Union GULAG
camp in Kolyma
. His father was an Italian American
communist, deported by the US authorities to the USSR because of his political activities.
Sgovio moved to the USSR at the age of 19 in 1935 as a political émigré; on arrival in the USSR he gave up his US passport
. He became disillusioned after three years living in Moscow, tried to reclaim his passport at the US embassy there and was arrested by the NKVD
on 12 March 1938 as he left the embassy. After a perfunctory and routine inquiry in which the Soviet authorities seem mainly to have been concerned with his attendance at the embassy, he was sentenced by a troika
of three officials to five years' forced labour as a "socially dangerous element". Some years later Sgovio sought to have his case reviewed; the prosecutor
who dealt with the application concluded that, "Sgovio does not deny that he did make an application at the American Embassy. Therefore I believe that there is no reason to review Sgovio's case."
Sgovio was transported in a prison train to Vladivostok
. Sgovio wrote, "Our train
left Moscow on the evening of 24 June. It was the beginning of an eastward journey which was to last a month. I can never forget the moment. Seventy men ... began to cry." From Vladivostok
he was shipped aboard the to the Kolyma
camps.
Within the camps the professional criminal classes were often kept alongside and dominated the other prisoners including the political prisoner
s. Tattoos of various types were one of the hallmarks of the professional criminal and as a professional artist
, Sgovio became part of the tattoo trade. For a while Sgovio was also personal orderly to a senior guard in the camp. At another time he was part of a tree-felling brigade
. During the Second World War, Sgovio learned of the conflict in the Pacific when machine parts wrapped in old newspaper
s arrived in the Gulag having been diverted from the US Lend-Lease
program with the USSR. He witnessed and later wrote about the starvation and deaths of countless Gulag prisoners and victims of the Soviet authorities.
Sgovio survived his ordeal. When he was released he had to remain in the USSR where he was stigmatised as a former prisoner. Eventually he was permitted to return to the United States in 1960. He related his experiences and the lethal nature of the camps in his memoir, Dear America! Why I Turned Against Communism, published in 1972.
His fate is also recounted in Tim Tzouliadis' book The Forsaken.
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, ex-Communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
, and former inmate of a Soviet Union GULAG
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
camp in Kolyma
Kolyma
The Kolyma region is located in the far north-eastern area of Russia in what is commonly known as Siberia but is actually part of the Russian Far East. It is bounded by the East Siberian Sea and the Arctic Ocean in the north and the Sea of Okhotsk to the south...
. His father was an Italian American
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
communist, deported by the US authorities to the USSR because of his political activities.
Sgovio moved to the USSR at the age of 19 in 1935 as a political émigré; on arrival in the USSR he gave up his US passport
Passport
A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth....
. He became disillusioned after three years living in Moscow, tried to reclaim his passport at the US embassy there and was arrested by the NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
on 12 March 1938 as he left the embassy. After a perfunctory and routine inquiry in which the Soviet authorities seem mainly to have been concerned with his attendance at the embassy, he was sentenced by a troika
Troika
The general meaning of the Russian and Bulgarian word troika is three of a kind, a collection of three or simply the number three. It may also mean:-Politics:* Troika of judges or political leaders...
of three officials to five years' forced labour as a "socially dangerous element". Some years later Sgovio sought to have his case reviewed; the prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
who dealt with the application concluded that, "Sgovio does not deny that he did make an application at the American Embassy. Therefore I believe that there is no reason to review Sgovio's case."
Sgovio was transported in a prison train to Vladivostok
Vladivostok
The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...
. Sgovio wrote, "Our train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
left Moscow on the evening of 24 June. It was the beginning of an eastward journey which was to last a month. I can never forget the moment. Seventy men ... began to cry." From Vladivostok
Vladivostok
The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...
he was shipped aboard the to the Kolyma
Kolyma
The Kolyma region is located in the far north-eastern area of Russia in what is commonly known as Siberia but is actually part of the Russian Far East. It is bounded by the East Siberian Sea and the Arctic Ocean in the north and the Sea of Okhotsk to the south...
camps.
Within the camps the professional criminal classes were often kept alongside and dominated the other prisoners including the political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s. Tattoos of various types were one of the hallmarks of the professional criminal and as a professional artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, Sgovio became part of the tattoo trade. For a while Sgovio was also personal orderly to a senior guard in the camp. At another time he was part of a tree-felling brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
. During the Second World War, Sgovio learned of the conflict in the Pacific when machine parts wrapped in old newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
s arrived in the Gulag having been diverted from the US Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease was the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, China, Free France, and other Allied nations with materiel between 1941 and 1945. It was signed into law on March 11, 1941, a year and a half after the outbreak of war in Europe in...
program with the USSR. He witnessed and later wrote about the starvation and deaths of countless Gulag prisoners and victims of the Soviet authorities.
Sgovio survived his ordeal. When he was released he had to remain in the USSR where he was stigmatised as a former prisoner. Eventually he was permitted to return to the United States in 1960. He related his experiences and the lethal nature of the camps in his memoir, Dear America! Why I Turned Against Communism, published in 1972.
His fate is also recounted in Tim Tzouliadis' book The Forsaken.
