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From the USSR to Brighton Beach
The immigration of Soviets to this small Brooklyn neighborhood is a story of struggle, desperation, chaos, discrimination, survival, and community.
Brooklyn’s Brighton Beach is a gritty neighborhood full of character. It’s a lesser-traveled-to part of Brooklyn that photographers find “far from typical,” like John Vetromile, who I take around the area.
Brighton is also known as Little Odesa because of the many ex-USSR families who move there. While walking down Brighton Beach Ave., there are older women selling piroshki to the public. Many awnings are in Russian or reference the culture in some way. And if you know where to go, you can find a few Russian bathhouses. Almost every cashier, business owner, and resident is Russian-speaking. Even the Mexican workers who live in Brighton with their families speak the language.
The beach of Brighton Beach is unlike any American seaside. There’s a row of fine Russian restaurants on the wooden boardwalk, resembling seacoasts in Europe. And in the winter, you will probably encounter a person going for a quick swim.
“More than half the stores on Brighton Beach Avenue are owned by immigrants from the former Soviet Union”
