Thread: I need advice on marrying into a Russian family!

I'm marrying into a family that moved from Ukraine about 10 years ago to the US and my fiance's parents still hold onto their beliefs from there. They absolutly HATE me because I am neither Russian nor Christian. What can I do, if anything, to smooth things over with them, especially the father? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks!

What religion are the parents? What religion are you? How does your fiance feel about his parents not getting along with you?

Tell them you don't like them because they are not tall enough.

You can't exactly "smooth over" prejudices. Good luck, though. I'd hate to see something like this get in your way.

Tim.

Be respectful to them and kind, even when they aren't nice to you and they don't seem to deserve it. Don't answer back 'cos that always makes matters worse, and show them you care about your partner and their cultural heritage. It may be hard at first, but it should pay off in the long run.

These parents sound like they are clutching on to the past. But if they didn't want their offspring to marry a non-ukrainian they shouldn't have quit their homeland in the first place. They will have to face the results of their actions.

Being kind and respectful may or may not help. It depends on what the cultural conflict is based on. Being rude and insulting will not help at all! It's hard to give you any ideas when I don't know the facts. Like why do you think the parents hate you? Has their son given up his family traditions or religion for you? Are they in America by choice or would they rather be back in their home country? If they rally HATE you there must be more to it than your nationality and religion. My experience is that Russians usually like Americans and are happy for their child to marry one.