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canada, holodomor

Holodomor Remembrance Flame in Regina

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The Holodomor Remembrance Flame wrapped up its toured through the prairies this week. The Regina Leader Post posted an article on it with an interview with Stefan Horlatsch, a Holodomor survivor who has been representing the flame in Canada:

Horlatsch was 12 in 1932 and has vivid memories of the famine. When the famine-genocide began, Horlatsch and his family were living in Zaporizhia in the eastern region of Ukraine near the Black Sea. His family’s land, livestock and grain were seized by Soviet authorities. His father was sent to Siberia like most of the men during this time.

The Ukrainian Canadian Congress estimates that one-third of Holodomor victims were children. In that short period of time, one-quarter of the Ukrainian population died. The genocide policy introduced by then-Soviet leader Joseph Stalin included confiscation of all food both inside and outside the homes. Ukrainian people were forced to stay within their communities, therefore making it impossible to search for food.

The tour now heads to Alberta over the weekend, and then off to the US.

UPDATE: Click Here for pictures of this event

canada, holodomor, news

Support Bill 61 in Ontario – the Holodomor Memorial Day Act 2008

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Dave Levac, MPP of Brantford introduced Bill 61 to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to make the 4th Saturday in November in each year Holodomor Memorial Day

Preamble

The Holodomor is the name given to the genocide by famine that occurred in Ukraine from 1932 to 1933. As many as 10 million Ukrainians perished as victims of a man-made famine under Joseph Stalin’s regime, with 25,000 dying each day at the peak of the famine.

The Government of Ukraine, the United States House of Representatives, the United States Senate, the Senate of Canada, UNESCO, the United Nations and over 40 other jurisdictions around the world have officially condemned the Holodomor or recognized it as genocide. Ukraine has established the fourth Saturday in November in each year as the annual day to commemorate the victims of the Holodomor.

It is appropriate to extend the annual commemoration of the victims of the Holodomor to Ontario. A memorial day provides an opportunity to reflect on and to educate the public about the enduring lessons of the Holodomor and other crimes against humanity.

Therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Holodomor Memorial Day

1. The fourth Saturday in November in each year is proclaimed Holodomor Memorial Day to commemorate the genocide by famine that occurred in Ukraine from 1932 to 1933.

Commencement

2. This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short title

3. The short title of this Act is the Holodomor Memorial Day Act, 2008.

If you live in Ontario, contact your MPP and tell them to support this bill! Manitoba already passed introduced legislation on the 4th Saturday in November to be known as Ukrainian Famine and Genocide Memorial Day! On Tuesday, the bill passed its second reading!

canada, radio

Nash Holos Ukrainian (Bilingual) Radio Program – April 27, 2008

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Nash Holos: British Columbia’s longest-running and only bilingual Ukrainian radio program! It airs live Sundays at 6pm on 1320AM CHMB Vancouver.

On this week’s episode:
Sylvia has a recipe for mushroom stuffed eggs, Myrna describes Easter in Ukraine, Fr. Ihor Kutash on the Resurrection, an interview with pysanka artist Joan Brander and her new book launched recently in Washington DC, proverb, community events and plenty of great Ukrainian Easter music.

To listen, click on this mp3 or right click and ‘save target as’ to download

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

canada, radio

Ukrainian Time – April 26 2008

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Ukrainian Time is a Ukrainian-language radio programme,
serving the Montreal community since 1963 and is hosted by Valentyna Golash. Material is often presented in English and French. Ukrainian Time is the media, which bonds the Ukrainian community in Montreal. The one-hour show is broadcast from Radio CFMB 1280 AM in Montreal on Saturdays at 6:00 p.m.

To listen, click on this mp3 or right click and ’save target as’ to download.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

sopranos, usa, video

Ukrainian on The Sopranos

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This aired on the second last episode of The Sopranos, titled “The Blue Comet“:

Paulie Walnuts and Patsy Parisi heed Tony’s plan for a hit on Phil. Corky Caporale arranges the hit but it fails when the “cousins from Italy” hired to do the job kill Phil’s goomah (Yaryna) and her father, mistaking him for Phil. When Corky is told of the hit on the phone, while he’s in an adult video store, he thinks little of the fact that the murdered man spoke Ukrainian, simply responding “Whatever,” and he calls Patsy Parisi to tell him that the job is done and wonders about Phil speaking Ukrainian. Patsy puts it off and just transmits “It’s done.”

Yaryna (played by Matilda Downey who is Polish-American) and her Father were the first people on The Sopranos who actually spoke Ukrainian. She appeared in the second last episode and the last.

Another actress Oksana Lada (who also appeared in CSI Miami & 30 Rock under stage name Oksana Babiy) played Irina Peltsin from Kazahkstan, Svetlana’s cousin and Tony’s love interest at one point. She is actually from Ivano-Frankivsk oblast in Ukraine who studied Economics before emigrating to the US and started modelling and acting.

It’s interesting why producer David Chase chose to use Ukrainian in the show, his show is full of symbolism and political observances. While in the same episode he references the decline of the American Century to the Asian Century, is he also commenting on the rise of Orange Ukraine?