Vyshyvanka [Vih-shih-vahn-kah]
International Vyshyvanka Day (Embroidered Shirt Day) is celebrated every third Thursday of May, falling on May 18th this year. The embroidered shirt holds deep significance as it symbolizes Ukrainian heritage, dignity, and represents the resilience of the Ukrainian people in the face of adversity. On Vyshyvanka Day, Ukrainians and friends of Ukraine around the world wear a Ukrainian embroidered shirt to show their support for the Ukrainian people and as a symbol of unity and solidarity.
This May 18 we will also commemorate the Crimean Tatar Genocide Memorial Day. On this day, we honour the memory of the countless lives lost, families torn apart, and the suffering endured by the Crimean Tatar community during their forced deportation from Crimea in 1944 under the orders of Joseph Stalin.
May 18 is an important opportunity to gather together to commemorate the sacrifices of those who have fought for Ukraine in the ongoing war, the situation of Ukrainian prisoners of war and Russia’s historical and contemporary attacks on the Crimean Tatar People.
Today, as Russia continues to perpetrate genocide in Ukraine and persecute the Crimean Tatars, it is crucial to ensure Ukraine’s victory in the ongoing war, so that Crimean Tatars and all Ukrainians can live in freedom in their homeland. Wear your embroidered shirt with pride and honour on May 18th to let your Canadian colleagues, neighbours, and friends know that Vyshyvanka unites Ukrainians wherever we live and whatever the challenges we face.
Vyshyvanka = Love. Vyshyvanka = Protect.
Vyshyvanka = Have Faith. Vyshyvanka = Await.
Events Across Canada
Join #Vyshyvanka Day and show your support for the Ukrainian peoples’ right to live free and in peace in their own land.
Click here to see the event in your community.
If you know of an event that is happening but do not see it included on our lust, email nationaloffice@ucc.ca
Sürgünlik
In 1944, the totalitarian Soviet communist regime exiled the Crimean Tatar People, the Іndigenous people of Crimea, from their homeland. Hundreds of thousands of men, women and children were forcibly and violently deported to Siberia and Central Asian regions of the USSR. Nearly half lost their lives during the first year of exile. The Soviet regime prohibited the Crimean Tatar People from returning to Crimea for almost 50 years.
In 2014, Russia invaded and occupied Crimea. Today, the Crimean People, who are bravely resisting the Russian occupation of their ancestral homeland, are once again subject to systemic repressions, arbitrary arrests and attacks on their inalienable rights and freedoms by the Russian occupation regime. The Representative Assembly of the Crimean Tatar People, the Mejlis, has been illegally banned. The Crimean Tatar People are once again the victims of a cruel and ruthless occupation regime.
Movies about Ukrainian heritage
Спадок Нації (The Legacy of a nation)
The first ever documentary about Ukrainian embroidered shirts.
Соловей Співає (The Nightingale Sings)
A documentary on the history and importance of the Ukrainian language
Ткацький Шлях (Weaving Path)
A documentary on folk weaving as part of Ukrainian cultural heritage.
