the entire western industry of explaining russia has been a sham. for decades it cultivated the image of russia as this mysterious, chaotic and complex power, impossible to predict or explain it in simple terms and without the help of limited number of brilliant minds
the power where every decision is a byproduct of complex minds of russian rulers, sinister but brilliant. hence 99% of this Western expertise would happen at micro-level psychoanalysing individuals but remaining totally blind to more complex phenomena of russian abusive culture
the only industry where by merit of speaking the imperial language and visiting the metropole at least once you can automatically claim to be also an expert on hundreds of nations russia is or used to colonize
art is the best shortcut for understanding russian colonial nature. would you like me to share some cool Ukrainian movies with English subtitles that will enlighten you about colonialism? you’re in luck
🪆🪓
my absolute fav is Chornobyl 22 by Oleksiy Radynskyi, the brightest anti-colonial thinker in Ukraine. this doc is about russian failed occupation of a Ukrainian nuclear station in 2022. eco-terrorism has always been a fixture of russian colonial behavior takflix.com/en/films/chorn…
Eurodonbas by Kornii Hrytsiuk is a Ukrainian blockbuster of wartime docs, demolishing one of russia’s central imperial myths - that they ‘built’ eastern Ukraine. most of the featured cities don’t exist anymore, they were erased by russia takflix.com/en/films/eurod…
together with thousands of other Ukrainian Roma, Oleksiy Tyrpak heroically fought to defend his home and Europe from fascism. young, brave and fearless, russian murderers stole his from us, too. he would turn 25 earlier this month
earlier into the full-scale invasion, Oleksiy got seriously injured defending Ukraine and could retire from the army. despite persuasions from the family, he decided to return to the frontline after the recovery: “I simply can’t leave my battalion behind,” he told his loved ones
“he would never leave anyone behind”
entire Oleksiy’s village Tur’ya Pasika in Zakarpattia oblast showed up to mourn him. kindness and Ukrainianness of this hero transcended ethnicity, skin color or social status. russia has no right to exist
@suspilne_news
this Ukrainian woman risked everything to walk out of russian occupation in southern Ukraine — russians often execute running refugees. the moment when she shows her Ukrainian passport indicating she just wants to get home broke my heart in million pieces
@vgorunews
Ukrainian soldiers also risked everything to evacuate her from a destroyed bridge at the frontline. your daily reminder that Ukraine stands for kindness and never leaves anyone behind
today we mark the Roma Resistance Day. the history of Ukrainian Roma fighting back against the colonial invaders, whether in 1945 or 2024, is integral to this story. however, it is also one of the least known.
my latest essay for russian colonialism 101. the newsletter
The Ukrainian resistance against fascism and colonialism, both its Western and russian forms, dates back generations. Romani-Ukrainians are integral part of this history
Misha Biketov was a young artist writing electronic music for my favorite Ukrainian label @dnipropop. then russia came to his home and instead of art, he had to defend his family from genocide. Misha became a great drone operator instead. but russians still took him away from us
Misha was just 24.
His label and frontline unit are fundraising to support his family in these trying times.