Geoff Thompson’s documentary, Luxembourg in America, shows the continued and important connections between American ancestors from the wave of Luxembourg immigrants to the U.S. Midwest

After a round-up of the ever evolving and heavy news of our times, with Sasha Kehoe, my guest this week is Geoff Thompson. Geoff is known for many things in Luxembourg, but most recently has turned his hands and brain to documentary making.

Mid-19th century exodus

In the mid-19th century, due to Napoleonic law here in Luxembourg which meant equal sharing of inheritance, once sustainable farms became unsustainable when divided between large numbers of children. And so, some shares were sold to siblings and that money was used to pay for the voyage to the ‘free world’.

Geoff Thompson’s documentary Luxembourg in America visits their descendants in places like Wisconsin, Illinois, and Iowa, and sees the heritage that is both celebrated and remaining.

A Personal Exploration of Heritage

Geoff Thompson, who is also President of the British & Irish Film Festival Luxembourg, shared his motivation:

“It started with a simple curiosity – how had these Luxembourg communities preserved so much of their identity? What I found was an entire parallel Luxembourg, alive and well in small towns across the Midwest.”

From townships like Dacada and Belgium in Wisconsin to the Luxembourg American Cultural Society (LACS) housed in a traditional stone home, the film uncovers an "island of Luxembourgish culture" preserved across oceans and generations. Thompson brings the audience along to the annual “Luxembourg under the Stars” summer festival, where Bofferding beer flows, Träipen (blood sausage) contests are held, and Moselle wine is imported and enjoyed.

Midwestern Roots, European Branches

The importance of maintaining and exploring one’s heritage is deeply evident in this documentary, underscoring our internal need to know where we come from. By deepening our roots on this earth, we seem to feel more connected to our time and place in history.

This documentary shows the shared journeys of these Luxembourg-Americans back to Luxembourg for visits, and vice versa, where Luxembourg officials visit the American diaspora. Notably, it is when some of the American Luxembourgers find family connections still alive here in Luxembourg that the magic deepens. The roots grow stronger and that ancestral bond over time is secured today.

For Luxembourg nationals and many of us who live in Luxembourg, coming from other countries, this film highlights our own movements and distance from our own roots. It provokes conversation and reflection on multiculturalism, belonging, and identity. Half of Luxembourg’s current population is of foreign background. Yet, just like the Luxembourg-Americans abroad, the modern Grand Duchy is also navigating what it means to preserve culture in a globally connected society.

We often think of emigration as loss, and indeed one third of the population of Luxembourg was lost at the time, but it grew in another part of the world, maintaining what culture there was. This cultural identity is most evident in food, the passing down of recipes, the religion and of course the language.

You can watch the documentary here:

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt33996768/