NATIONAL HOLODOMOR AWARENESS WEEK NOVEMBER 22-28, 2021
National Holodomor Awareness Week will be launched from November 22-28, 2021, commemorating the 88th anniversary of the Holodomor.
As we gather this year in remembrance, we pray for the souls of the victims of the Holodomor. We are grateful to the survivors who have courageously shared their stories to help educate and unite us in raising awareness of the Holodomor. We appeal to the families of the victims and survivors to continue sharing the truth of the Holodomor in the hope that future generations will heed the lessons of history.
INTERNATIONAL and NATIONAL HOLODOMOR MEMORIAL DAY Saturday, November 27
On Saturday, November 27 we encourage all Canadians to take a moment to remember the victims:
- At 19:32 (7:32 p.m.) local time pause for a moment of silence wherever one may be to honour the memory of the victims.
- Light a candle of remembrance in one’s home.
- Post photos of your candles on social media with your thoughts of remembrance.
- Request local churches to toll their bells at 19:32 in honour of the victims.
On Sunday, November 28:
- Memorial services will be celebrated in our Ukrainian parishes.
Focus for 2021
- Engaging descendants of survivors
The Ukrainian World Congress International Holodomor Coordinating Committee launched the Global Holodomor Descendants Network in fall 2020, followed by the launch of the Holodomor Descendants’ Network in Canada in spring 2021 with a successful webinar. The goal of the global network is to create a platform for communication, support, advocacy, and activism.
Every Canadian community and organization is encouraged to actively engage descendants in commemorations while building a database of individuals interested in participating and learning more about the Holodomor and the network itself.
Programs are currently being developed to engage our youth through our heritage school system and youth organizations.
You can hear the stories as told by descendants of Holodomor survivors as part of a project launched by the Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Centre titled Children of Holodomor Survivors Speak. This is a great project to share with descendants in your community in promoting the network.
The National Holodomor Awareness Committee will be working with interested descendants across the country in developing a joint project to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor in 2023. For more information on this initiative please contact the Chair of the UCC National Holodomor Awareness Committee Irka Mycak (irene.mycak@gmail.com).
- Petition to strip Walter Duranty of the Pulitzer Prize
Walter Duranty was the recipient of the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in 1932 for his reporting in The New York Times of Joseph Stalin’s collectivization program, called The Five-Year Plan, which served as a vehicle for the genocide of millions of Ukrainians. Denying publicly any famine, Walter Duranty did in private acknowledge Stalin’s atrocities but continued to lie in order to have access to Stalin.
The U.S. Committee for Ukrainian Holodomor-Genocide Awareness has launched a petition and requests your support in appealing to the Pulitzer Prize Board to revoke Duranty’s undeserved prize. Stripping Walter Duranty of his Pulitzer Prize would be a grand gesture of atonement for the wrongs committed by The New York Times and the Pulitzer Prize Board.
Please sign the petition at this link https://bit.ly/2X9Lduk.
- National commemoration
This year’s National Commemoration will take place online and will be broadcast live by the UCC on Saturday, November 20, which marks the beginning of the UCC National Holodomor Awareness Week. The commemoration will then be re-broadcast on Saturday, November 27, on Holodomor Memorial Day.
- Local commemorations
We commend all of our communities across Canada for their creativity in raising awareness of the Holodomor and engaging the Canadian public in remembrance. We anticipate commemorations to again take place in the form of live events in accordance with any local and provincial restrictions that may remain in place. However, we encourage communities to still consider virtual components in addition to live events with the goal of engaging an even wider audience.
Regardless of the format, we encourage communities to find creative ways to include broad segments of the local community, including youth and elected officials, in an effort to share the story of the Holodomor.
The list of commemorations is available here: https://www.ucc.ca/2021/11/18/holodomor-commemorations-2021/
Please visit https://www.ucc.ca/about-ucc/committees/holodomor-national-awareness-committee/ for resources to support local commemorations.
Information on all commemorative initiatives in Canada will be posted on the UCC National website as it becomes available. Please share details on your local and provincial commemorations with UCC National via email ucc@ucc.ca.
- Resources from our partners
We are very fortunate in Canada to have the support of two organizations that produce valuable educational and promotional materials to help raise Holodomor awareness and support education. Please visit the sites of the Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Centre (UCRDC) and Holodomor Research and Education Consortium (HREC) for materials and information on events.
- Holodomor Memorial Day in schools and Educational Resources
The UCC Holodomor Education Committee appeals annually to individual schools and school boards to commemorate the fourth Friday in November as Holodomor Memorial Day (November 26). We encourage communities to support this initiative.
For more information on educational resources including learning activities, lesson plans, the latest teaching resources, speakers or in-service teacher training sessions on the Holodomor visit www.education.holodomor.ca or contact: Valentina Kuryliw 416 242-5361 (vkuryliw@sympatico.ca).
- Holodomor National Awareness Tour
The Holodomor National Awareness Tour including the Holodomor Mobile Classroom is back on the road. We encourage all communities to take full advantage of the benefits of this mobile classroom for educational purposes as well as for enhancing community outreach.
The Holodomor National Awareness Tour is a project of the Canada Ukraine Foundation with partners Ukrainian Canadian Congress, Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Centre, and Holodomor Research and Education Consortium.
More information on this project is available at www.holodomortour.ca.
- Ukrainian World Congress projects
Project MARIA – the multimedia mobile memorial sponsored by the UWC will be opening in Lviv, Ukraine, on November 4, beginning a two-year Ukraine tour. Follow the exhibit by Ukrainian Canadian artist Lesia Maruschak at this link https://www.facebook.com/TheRealProjectMARIA/
Holodomor and the Nation: Multigenerational effects – a webinar will be held on November 18 focusing on the effects of the Holodomor on the development of the Ukrainian nation. More information is available at this link https://fb.me/e/1wmkhG0Ev.
Our priorities
Honoring survivors – We are grateful to the survivors of the Holodomor living in our communities for their active engagement with commemorative initiatives and for sharing their stories with our children, youth, the community, Canadians and the media.
Remembering the victims – We continue to personalize this horrific crime by remembering individuals by name.
Engaging descendants of survivors – We encourage descendants of Holodomor survivors to participate in events across the country. They are key to ensuring that the stories live on to educate future generations.
