Month: July 24, 2020 5:59 am

The following statement was released by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress on July 16.

The Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) joins Ukraine’s civil society, and all concerned citizens in Ukraine in condemning draft bill No. 2362, scheduled to be voted on tomorrow by Ukraine’s Parliament. The draft bill’s adoption would undermine Ukrainian-language education and the continued development of Ukrainian as the sole state language of Ukraine.

The statement below was released by the New York-based National Office of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America on July 16.

Following the launch of an advocacy campaign in 2018, over 63 airports worldwide as well major media organizations such as the BBC, The Washington Post and The New York Times adopted the use of the Ukrainian transliteration “Kyiv” for the capital of Ukraine. In 2019, the Embassy of Ukraine in the United States announced that the United States Board on Geographic Names had also adopted the Ukrainian language-based spelling of Kyiv at the request of the Embassy, the United States Department of State, the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus and the largest representation of Ukrainians in America, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA).

Dear Editor:

Russia invaded Ukraine in Crimea and in the Donbas six years ago.

As a result of Russia’s incessant military aggression against Ukraine since then, over 13,000 individuals have been killed and over 30,000 injured in the Donbas, and there are currently over 1.5 million internally displaced persons in Ukraine.

During this military aggression, six years ago – on 17 July 17, 2014 – Russian military forces downed civilian flight MH17 in eastern Ukraine, horrifying the world and killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew members aboard.

Dear Editor:

I am writing in response to Andriy Semotiuk’s opinion piece about the Black Lives Matter movement (June 28-July 5). I find it truly amazing that Mr. Semotiuk attempts to establish a case for Ukrainian Americans/Canadians to rally behind that movement based on a parallel history. It is clear that Mr. Semotiuk either has no understanding of Ukrainian history or is simply ignoring one of the most crucial aspects of our Ukrainian history.

Dear Editor:

I give credit to The Weekly for trying to present a fair and balanced rationale for Ukrainians to support, or not, the Black Lives Matter movement (“Opinion,” June 28/July 5).

However, I find totally delusional Andriy Semotiuk’s historical comparisons of the centuries-old conflict of Ukraine vs Russia with the present-day racially inspired and Marxist-driven discord with the African American community. He thinks the Russians are prejudiced and discriminating against the Ukrainians because of “who we are” – what a spin!

Please note our revised guidelines:

The Ukrainian Weekly welcomes letters to the editor that react to articles published on its pages. Opinions expressed by letter-writers are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of either The Weekly editorial staff or its publisher, the Ukrainian National Association.

Letters must be signed (anonymous letters are not published). The daytime phone number, e-mail address and complete mailing address of the letter-writer must be given for verification purposes.

For me, this is the strangest summer ever. After 60-plus years of memorable vacations, this one will have to be in our backyard. An American passport, which until recently opened doors everywhere except North Korea and Iran, is now rejected in half the world. Even parts of America are off-limits for visitors. For Clevelanders, New York state – whether Manhattan or Soyuzivka in the Catskills – is off limits. Because of the coronavirus, Ohioans, along with folks from 30 or more other states, are subject to a 14-day quarantine. The same is true for tourists to New Jersey and Connecticut. There’s no point vacationing in Washington, D.C., prior to this a favorite destination for us. Just about everything is closed. California, Florida, Arizona and other states are ravaged by the pandemic while suffering 100-plus degree heat every day, so we’re not going there.

The members of the popular Ukrainian Canadian band Rushnychok met for the first time in 1969 at the intersection of Fairmount and Hutchison streets in Montreal. The Ukrainian National Federa­tion hall is still a stately landmark on the northeast corner. From that starting point, Rushnychok would travel to where old-world memories intersected with the demands of a new generation. It was at a time when fierce loyalties forged by the hammer of loss on the anvil of war encountered a flower-waving youth searching for love and peace. Our success would lie in appealing to both sets of travelers and dancing them across the divide.

A campaign ad for U.S. President Donald Trump that aims to promote him as a guarantor of public safety features a photo of pro-democracy protesters in Ukraine battling with police during the 2014 Euro-Maidan revolution.

The ad, which appeared on the president’s official Facebook page, consists of two images: one showing Mr. Trump standing alongside law enforcement officials on the left side and citizens in helmets fighting with police on the other side.

The caption below the photos reads “Public Safety vs Chaos & Violence.”

SOMERSET, N.J. – Although the facilities of the Ukrainian History and Education Center (UHEC) are still closed to the public, its staff has been busy creating online content to engage its members, supporters, friends and members of the community. There are four new series, with something for everyone.

Since hands-on, in-person workshops are cancelled for the near future, “Folk Arts @ UHEC Virtual Edition” will be online in the form of virtual workshops or presentations about folk arts such as pysanky, embroidery, weaving, traditional bread making and even Petrykivka painting. Petrykivka painting workshops are scheduled for August 1 and August 16, and will be taught by Halyna Nazarenko directly from Petrykivka, Ukraine.

HORSHAM, Pa. – The Ukrainian Americ­an Sport Center Tryzub has postponed this year’s Ukrainian Independence Day Festival – the 29th annual – from Sunday, August 23, to Father’s Day, Sunday, June 20, 2021. Tryzub did so in order to safeguard the precious health and safety of its members, member families and volunteers, the communities that it serves, and the general public.

In addition to celebrating Ukraine’s inde­pendence, the rescheduled festival hopes to also celebrate freedom from the const­raints and restrictions of the Corona­virus pandemic.

KYIV – The Cabinet of Ministers’ appointment of an acting minister of education and science of Ukraine has sparked a public outcry, marked by several public protests and official letters to the president and the government.

The appointee, Serhii Shkarlet, was a member of the Party of Regions and worked with President Viktor Yanukovych’s reviled Minister of Education Dmytro Tabachnyk. Mr. Shkarlet is also suspected of corruption and plagiarism. Nevertheless, both Pre­sident Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal supported him for the education minister’s role; as a result, Mr. Shkarlet was appointed acting minister even though the Verkhovna Rada committee on education did not vote its approval.