How can Colby help Ukraine’s fight for freedom?
By now, you should know what happened this week. The Russian army charged into Ukraine — on Vladimir Putin’s orders — to conquer its neighbor through blood. In stark contrast to the world’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, the fierce Ukrainian resistance has shown the world strength and resolve.
Though distant spectators, it seems we’ve digitally cut our distance. The new wave of citizen journalism online has brought many closer than ever to the front. Instagram and TikTok are filled with raw footage of war.
Friends who last week were trading memes are now asking each other if they’ve seen “that video of the woman confronting the Russian soldier” or “the island in the Black Sea that told an invading warship to go fuck itself.”
This intimate portrait of catastrophe is double edged. On one hand, it has stirred in Colby a deep sympathy for the bravery with which the Ukrainians have fought off Kremlin autocracy.
But, as the gunfire and missiles take over our feed, we need to ask ourselves how involved we really are — and how involved we can be.
I think there are three main, though small, ways that students of the College can support Ukraine’s defense.
The brazen Russian shelling of residential neighborhoods in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv shows just how much civilians are suffering at this very moment.
Money pumped into organizations like UNICEF, Doctors without Borders, and Save the Children might help to alleviate the tremendous toll on families across the country.
Peace on Ukraine’s terms is the only permanent remedy to this attack, but robust international aid will be critical in the meantime.
Another step we at Colby can take to assist in repelling the Russian invasion and further conflict in Eastern Europe is to identify misinformation on social media.
One recurring post I’ve seen blames the US and EU for “overthrowing” Ukraine’s president Viktor Yanukovich in 2014. The reality is far from it — the people of Ukraine, after months of protest and government crackdown, successfully called for democratic elections. Yanukovich fled shortly after.
His ouster was entirely the job of protesters in Kyiv — nobody else deserves that credit. This sneaky propaganda is everywhere; if you see it, say you saw it.
It’s important to take a step back and understand certain truths. First, this war is the fault of Vladimir Putin and his regime, not the whole Russian people, many of whom are standing up to their foul government.
Second, the disgust you and I feel at the unprovoked killing in Eastern Europe needs to stay strong and travel well. Authoritarianism lives everywhere and only grows if left unchecked.
~ Donovan Lynch ’22
