Standing in solidarity with our colleagues impacted by the invasion of Ukraine

Dear community, 

As we all may know by now, on February 24th, 2022, Russia launched an invasion in Ukraine. Harvard University is a diverse place with many of us coming from all over the world. Some of us may be able to track our ancestry to areas or have friends and family living in nations such as Ukraine and Russia. Even for those who have no personal connection, the news of the recent invasion is deeply concerning and disturbing.  

Russia and Ukraine have had a complex relationship over the past centuries. As a very high-level overview, Ukraine became a part of the Soviet Union after the Soviet-Ukrainian war of 1917-1921. Decades later, Ukraine declared its independence from the USSR on August 24th, 1991. Tensions began to rise again in February of 2014 after the removal of Viktor Yanukovych, the pro-Russian president of Ukraine. Years later in 2022, Russia continues to put millions of Ukrainian lives at risk, and force people to flee their homes. We this displacement of people comes disheartening news of racism and discrimination faced by people of color as they seek to flee war for safety. This invasion has resulted in many unjust and unnecessary deaths.  

HarvardWIT+ would like to express our thoughts and support for our Ukrainian and Russian colleagues who are being impacted by this aggression.

Слава Україні (Glory to Ukraine). 

 

Reflections from our Ukrainian colleagues working at Harvard: 

“Those who have been through hell, and yet still show up every day to work hard and support and protect your family. Those who ask nothing of others except the liberty to make your own choices and destiny. Those who maintain hope in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. These are the values that the Ukrainian people are fighting for right now.” - Alex Nazarenko, Senior Software Engineer, HUIT 

 

“Even my 82-year-old great aunt, who was a child during WW2, said we are not going to lose. I am impressed with the fierce spirit of my family who would rather die than fall to a dictatorship.” - Anonymous

 

“It’s strange and ironic, because I am Ukrainian and my husband is Russian. Our Ukrainian friends have Russian blood, our Russian friends are part Ukrainian. No one wants war.” - Anonymous 

 

Click here to view Alex Nazarenko's full reflection. 

 

Click here to view the full versions of our colleague's interviews.

 

Please review these resources if you would like to donate or get involved. 

 

 

We know that war, violence, social, political, and economic unrest and instability continue to have untold consequences on people’s everyday lives long after the news reports stop. We also acknowledge the untold and under reported news, stories of conflict and turmoil from other countries throughout the world. We'd be remiss not to call out the obvious - media reporting informs which causes and countries receive support, admonishment, attention and/or censorship. We recognize no two stories or tragedies are the same, and do not need to be compared for merit on the international unrest scale. We also acknowledge the dynamics of the ways in which a country's power, racial makeup and economic significance plays into the breadth, depth, and balance on how the mainstream media portrays them. 

  We acknowledge and hold space for all who are impacted by war, violence, social, political, and economic unrest and instability. If you know of an injustice occurring globally that you would like WIT+ to address and provide resources for, please submit using this link