Under the Soviet Union, May 9 was a holiday of unconditional victory, but the communist authorities never mentioned the victims of the war. According to various sources, about 80 million dead. At the same time, Europe celebrated May 8 as the Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation.
Previously, Ukraine celebrated May 9 as Victory Day. However, things have changed since 2014.
The correspondent of TSN told how Ukrainian accents have changed in the celebration of May 8 and 9.
In Ukraine, after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula and occupied the territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the legislation changed. In 2015, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a memorable day – May 8, as the Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation.
How Ukrainian accents have changed in the celebration of May 8 and 9 / screenshot from the video
The new law established a ban on propaganda and public use of Nazi and communist symbols. The term “Great Patriotic War” disappeared from the legislation, and “Second World War” appeared. The date of the start of the war has also changed – not in 1941, but in 1939. At the same time, the emphasis of the event has changed – from the history of military operations to the stories of specific people, but the refusal to celebrate in favor of honoring. In Ukraine, more and more people believe that it is not necessary to celebrate May 9, but only the 8th – the Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation.
In the world, the symbol of Remembrance Day is the poppy flower. Its graphic image is a kind of allusion: on the one hand, it personifies a poppy flower, on the other, a bloody trace from a bullet.
How Ukrainian accents have changed in the celebration of May 8 and 9 / screenshot from the video
“Obviously, today’s war is forcing us to finally abandon those narratives that we inherited from the Soviet Union. And which were actively cultivated in Russia,” said Volodymyr Talishchak, deputy chairman of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance.
How Ukrainian accents have changed in the celebration of May 8 and 9 / screenshot from the video
In Russia, the theme of Victory Day as a military achievement is being actively promoted. Every year, young Russians parade with St. George ribbons, display weapons, but never remember the deaths, human tragedies, crimes and misfortunes that the war brought. This is at the heart of the days of remembrance in Europe. In the Russian Federation, a myth is being planted – that only thanks to the heroism of the Russians, and not by the forces of all the peoples of the then USSR and allies, victory over Nazism was won. The Russian slogan is “we can repeat”, instead of the European one – “never again”.
How Ukrainian accents have changed in the celebration of May 8 and 9 / screenshot from the video
“Many generations in the Soviet Union were allegedly proud of the trophies that their grandfathers brought from Germany: a watch or a lighter. But they were a source of pride. And today this memory of -” we can repeat “. It also applies to looting,” added Vladimir Talishchak
And Ukrainians saw this looting everywhere where the Russian army set foot on the territory of Ukraine. And it is precisely all these narratives – the exclusivity of the Russian people, the emphasis on victory – in particular, that have contributed to the fact that the Russians allegedly have every right to go to war wherever they want.
How Ukrainian accents have changed in the celebration of May 8 and 9 / screenshot from the video
War is not a victory parade, war is not parades and marching is a real disaster.
In order not to be associated with Russia’s “victory insanity” on May 9 and after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a bill was registered in the Verkhovna Rada to celebrate May 8 together with the whole of Europe – the Day of Remembrance and victory over Nazism in World War II, and this day should be made a day off. But after the end of martial law, and on May 9, together with all EU countries, celebrate Europe Day.
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