STATEMENTS AT THE HOLODOMOR MEMORIAL DEDICATION

UCCA President Tamara Olexy

Following is the text of the speech delivered by Tamara Olexy, president of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America.

Today is a momentous day in the history of the Ukrainian American community. After over a decade of hard work and anticipation, we have finally gathered here to witness the official unveiling of the long-awaited memorial to the victims of the Holodomor – Ukraine’s Genocide of 1932-1933.

As we stand in the shadow of this impressive memorial, let us not only reflect upon the horrific crime committed against the Ukrainian people 82 years ago, but also upon the millions of innocent souls taken by this tragedy, who, because their lives were brutally cut short by Stalin’s henchmen, lost the chance to see another sunrise, hear the laughter of their children, or live out their lives in dignity and peace.

Let this monument stand as a symbol of our unified efforts to expose the truth of this horrific act of genocide committed against the Ukrainian people in 1932-1933 – when millions of people, including 3 million children, were starved to death by the brutal policies of the Soviet regime. We mourn their deaths and pray that such atrocities never occur again.

As solemn as this occasion is, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, which spearheaded this effort, and the Ukrainian American community should feel a measure of pride in the unveiling of this historically significant monument.  Since the inception of this idea over a decade ago, our community’s efforts met with numerous obstacles in bringing this project to fruition. But we remained steadfast in our objective and, as a result, this solemn memorial will, from this day forward, stand in our nation’s capital as a reminder to the world about the horrors of genocide and as an everlasting symbol to promote vigilance against senseless acts of cruelty and violence – like those that befell Ukraine over eight decades ago.

On behalf of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, I would like to extend our sincerest gratitude to all those organizations and individuals who contributed to the building of this memorial. The tremendous effort of the U.S. Holodomor Committee, which worked on behalf of the entire Ukrainian community, deserves not only our appreciation but our praise.  I would also like to extend a sincere thank you to Congressman Sander Levin for his leadership in sponsoring the congressional bill establishing the right to erect a monument on federal land and for his continued unwavering support to our community throughout the years.

I would also like to thank all those who donated their financial and moral support to the realization of this project. Your generosity and hard work have led to this momentous occasion.  It is through our unified efforts as a community that we have been able to place our mark on history.

To the survivors of the Holodomor, who endured unspeakable hardships, we thank the Lord for sparing your lives. We are grateful that you are here with us today to witness this remarkable event.

Finally, in memory of our Ukrainian brethren who perished as a result of the Holodomor – so many died in obscurity, so many do not have headstones to mark their passing or mourners to weep for them. May this memorial serve as a symbolic marker for these millions of innocent Ukrainian souls – one that will keep their memory and their story alive for countless generations to come.

May their memory be eternal! Vichnaya pamiat!

UWC President Eugene Czolij

Below is the text of the English-language portion of remarks by Ukrainian World Congress President Eugene Czolij.

In his renowned work “The Divine Comedy” the famous Italian poet Dante gave the following chilling description of Hell: “When I awoke, before the dawn, amid their sleep I heard my sons …weep and ask for bread”.

In 1932-1933, Stalin recreated the same hell in order to suppress Ukraine’s independence movement.

At that time, Ukrainians were dying of hunger at the horrifying rate of 17 people every minute, 1,000 people every hour, and 25,000 people every day; and death by starvation is both slow and very painful.

As a consequence, statistics from a previously suppressed census reveal that there were only 26 million Ukrainians living in the USSR in 1937, whereas there ought to have been 10 million more, namely 36 million Ukrainians.

Notwithstanding the sheer magnitude of the Holodomor, Stalin did not succeed in his evil endeavor as Ukrainians fought for and ultimately regained their independence in 1991 and, after a courageous Euro-Maidan, got rid of an authoritarian and corrupt regime in order to be able to live in dignity and to move forward towards Europe and no longer backwards towards another Soviet Union.

Sadly, today, 82 years after the Holodomor, Ukrainians are once again forced to confront a new Russian aggression which threatens their aspirations to live freely in an independent and democratic Ukrainian state.

In 1932-1933, the international community turned a blind eye to Ukraine’s unimaginable suffering and to Russia’s brazen violation of our common fundamental freedoms and basic human rights. As a result, less than a decade later, another despot was emboldened to orchestrate another genocide, the Holocaust against the Jewish people, and to provoke the second world war.

That is why the Ukrainian World Congress reiterates its call for the international community, under the leadership of the United States, to effectively assist Ukraine in defending its borders, to stop Russian aggression from progressing further into Europe and to ensure global peace, security and stability.

On this occasion, the Ukrainian World Congress wishes to express its gratitude to the United States for recognizing the Holodomor as a genocide of the Ukrainian people and for enabling the construction of this outstanding memorial to the victims of the Holodomor in the nation’s capital.

 Sen. Charles Schumer

Following is the text of the video message by Sen. Charles Schumer. The text was provided by the senator’s office.

I sincerely regret that I’m unable to attend the unveiling of the
memorial this year, so near to the 82nd anniversary of the Holodomor, one of the worst tragedies in Western history.

Each year I have tried to join you all on this day, at St.
Patrick’s in New York or in Washington, and have for many years, because I believe from the bottom of my heart that it is our sacred duty to honor those whose memory calls down to us through the decades for justice – the innocent victims of the Ukrainian genocide.

It’s been 82 years since Stalin used hunger as a weapon against the innocent and the defenseless. He tried to annihilate the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian spirit, but he failed. Stalin is gone, Soviet Russia is gone, and the Ukrainian people live on.

Now, the Ukrainian people face another threat from another bully.
But now – as then – I believe that with the help of America and the family of nations – the Ukrainian people, and the Ukrainian nation, will persevere and assert its rightful autonomy and right to self-determination.

I believe this memorial will be a reminder of that truth: even in
the most difficult circumstances – including those faced today by the brave people of the Ukraine, the Ukrainian people will endure, survive and eventually thrive – an important lesson in light of these troubling times for the Ukrainian people.

But like the men, women and children who tragically lost their
lives in the genocide, the strength exhibited by the Ukrainian people will
not be forgotten. Even in my absence on this special day, know that I am
with you in spirit, this year and every year hereafter.

Larysa Kurylas

Following are remarks by Larysa Kurylas, design architect/sculptor of the Holodomor Memorial in Washington.

I first learned about the Holodomor from my seventh grade Ukrainian School teacher, Mrs. Varvara Dibert, who recalled with pain the memory of desperately hungry “bezprytulni” – homeless peasant children wandering the streets of Kyiv, and then again 10 years later from another teacher – scholar and Holodomor expert, Professor James Mace, whom I met while studying at Harvard. From Professor Mace I learned, in excruciating detail, of the Communist Party machine that engineered and enforced cruel and impossible grain requisitions. I, of course, did not know then that one day, with the design of this memorial, I would have the privilege of honoring the many millions of victims of the Holodomor. In my design, the lessons of my teachers guided me.

All of us, each in our own way, have contributed to honoring the memory of the victims, whether through spoken testimony, the written word, political action, scholarly research, requiem services, or with the simple act of being present here today. My contribution has been visual – in rendering a simple field of wheat as it transforms from beautiful bounty to haunting nothingness.

My hope is that when standing before this memorial, people will pause to reflect on the Holodomor, a famine of massive proportions, a famine deliberately executed and cynically denied, a famine in which millions of innocent victims perished in what once was the breadbasket of Europe.

This National Holodomor Memorial stands in the capital of the United States, in a country where truth may be spoken without fear of retribution. For five generations, arriving here at different times and for different reasons, Ukrainians have embraced this legacy of truth telling, relying on America to offer moral justice. This memorial, by turning a glaring spotlight on the brutality of a deliberate famine, one intended to cripple an entire people, serves as a reminder of cruelty that should never be allowed to happen again.

Only a caring community could bring to completion a project such as this. A project such as this first requires a caring Ukrainian-American family, one in which more than personal excellence and contribution to society are expected, one in which the duty to protect a threatened cultural heritage is instilled. I have been blessed to have such a family. It takes institutions within the Ukrainian-American community to reinforce those aspirations. It requires a political community in the United States that embraces, rather than rejects, cultural diversity. It takes another political community – the government of Ukraine – to have the resolve to understand its history and to dignify its tragedies. Finally, it takes cooperation between the United States and Ukraine to make a memorial to a Ukrainian tragedy stand in Washington DC.

To build a memorial takes a community of artists, architects, engineers, contractors, bronze casters, and stonemasons who care about achieving a beautiful and lasting result. And there must be a community of truth seekers, historians, scholars, and religious leaders who understand the deep need in all people to expose a heinous crime.

I am deeply proud to have been part of the efforts of all of these caring communities, an effort that has brought about the creation of the National Holodomor Memorial. Now it will take a caring world community to ensure that starvation as a weapon is never again used against innocent people.

Olha Matula

Following is the text of remarks by Holodomor survivor Olha Matula.

Dear Friends of Ukraine:

I am a child survivor of the Great Famine – Holodomor.

In 1933, during the Famine, I was only 5, but I vividly remember some episodes from that period. My parents contributed a lot to my knowledge of the Famine by interpreting events which we experienced.

Ten million innocent people and children were murdered by starvation. One-fourth of the population of Ukraine. Some villages were dying completely. Those were our relatives – grandparents, uncles and cousins. Тhe Famine in the cities was not as brutal as it was in the villages, where all food was confiscated from the peasants.

Our family lived in Kyiv and my mother testified for the Commission on the Ukraine Famine, which was created by the U.S. Congress in 1985. I will share some of my mother’s testimony.

In 1932-1933 thousands of peasants from surrounding villages, who were stripped of all food they had by Моscow, flocked to Kyiv. People were looking for salvation but found death. Every morning, as my mother went to work, she saw some of them sitting or leaning against the buildings, under the trees in squares – many of them were already dead, the others were dying.

Most frightening were the darkened faces of mothers with small children in their arms. The children, with faces wrinkled like baked apples, could no longer cry. They just squealed and moved their mouth searching for food – where there was none. Nobody was allowed to help peasants in any way.

Trucks removed dead bodies and dying from the streets. There was a collector for homeless children next door to our house complex. Dirty and in rags, children were brought from the streets of Kyiv by police. In a large building, former movie hall, the doors were always guarded. Sometimes, through the open double door, my mother saw the children laying on the long wooden bunk beds, just staring at the ceiling. I remember that too.

Several mornings, while rushing to work she had witnessed the police dragging the corpses of the children from the building and dumping them in the truck, just like piles of wood and covered them with dirty rags.

Civil workers in Kyiv received food stamps – 400 grams of bread daily and 200 grams for each dependent. Bread was the main staple of our diet. I remember we were always hungry.

At work my father was given a bowl of soup every day, he fished out pieces of potatoes, and sometimes bits of meat from it and brought it home for us children. Even today, I can visualize that little jar.

In 1933, when the commercial bread stores opened in Kyiv, some peasants attempted to stand in bread lines. The militia brutally removed peasants from these lines and forced them into trucks that took them out of the city.

In bigger cities there were special stores, Torgsins, where one could buy all sorts of goods in exchange for gold. But most of the people had no gold left. All of the crosses and wedding rings were sold for food. One day my father brought some rice and millet from Torgsin. When my mother asked him how did he get it, he simply opened his mouth – the crowns from his teeth were gone.

I volunteered to work with the commission on the Famine, transcribing more than a hundred of the interviews of witnesses from the tapes. They were survivors, who came to America after World War II as refugees. Some of them – your parents or grandparents.

The horrors of the stories of those who survived the Famine, are forever in my memory.

Historians come to conclusion that during the early months of the fateful 1933 in Ukraine at least 25,000 people died every day from hunger, 1,000 every hour –10 million in all. It was a crime against humanity!

Memory eternal to all who died in that genocide created by Moscow! Let this memorial serve as a reminder to all people that Russian aggression towards other nations should be stopped.

God bless America and save Ukraine!

Alexander Severyn

Below is the text of the address by Holodomor survivor Alexander Severyn (in translation from the original Ukrainian by George Sajewych).

Esteemed Ukrainian Community:

Please believe me when I say sincerely how unspeakably difficult it is for me, a member of a different generation of Ukrainians, a generation almost gone from the scene, to address you here today. At the same time, I am filled with joy, because a memorial to the victims of the Holodomor has been consecrated and unveiled in the capital of a mighty nation, the United States of America.

It seems that only yesterday the idea of building here a memorial to the victims of Ukraine’s Holodomor seemed something of a fantasy. And it is no wonder, for in the wake of World War I came wholesale devastation, the Civil War, the horrors of the collectivization campaign; the destruction of the peasantry, the cruel Holodomor, the repressions of 1937, World War II, another famine in 1947, hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians as displaced persons in the very heart of Europe and their violent repatriation to the USSR, the resettlement of the remaining displaced persons throughout the countries of the world – the U.S.A. being first among them.

For one reason or another, fortune in this land did not always smile upon us, the former DPs, nor did luck always favor us. However, in spite of this, the stubbornness for which we Ukrainians are known brought some wonderful achievements, for example the majestic unveiling of the Taras Shevchenko Monument in 1964 in Washington.

The issue of the Holodomor in Ukraine hung over us. Those of us alive and here today no doubt remember the 1953 mass March of Respect down New York’s Eighth Avenue to the famous Manhattan Center building, honoring the victims of famine.

It seems to me that the events marking the 50th anniversary of the Holodomor right here in Washington gave a decisive, lasting impetus to honoring the victims of the Kremlin-engineered Holodomor. As a result, we have today’s celebration, the unveiling of the monumental memorial to the victims of the Holodomor in Ukraine, a memorial which will stand tall for centuries as a warning for the future, so that never again shall the world allow a holodomor of any kind.

Glory and heartfelt honor to those who built or who in any way helped bring to fruition the building of this majestic memorial.

The victims of the Holodomor: May they forever live in our memory.

Glory to Ukraine!