I claim a natural affinity to Ukraine through the fact that one of my grandmothers left the harsh life there to emigrate to the U. S. Furthermore, all four of my wife’s grandparents did as well. We hold a paid membership in the group called Germans from Russia and have learned much of their lives through the history that knowledgable members bring to the membership.
We GR’s are not Ukrainian as such, but many affiliated with that identity shared reasons of hardship to come here. Catherine the Great knew the German farmers were progressive workers who could bring the steppes to flower. Unfortunately, successive rulers such as the czars, took away all the benefits the German farmers had been promised.
The Ukrainian culture is a bit cloudier to me, but a historian named Anne Applebaum described it and made it understandable. Many Ukrainians share a sense of ethnic identity that brings them together today. Applebaum says one of the problems existing is Russia wants to restore Ukraine as a lucrative colony. Stalin instituted collective farms, something which took away successful privately owned farm operations. Furthermore, Stalin set in place a dreadful period called “the Holodomor” in which any food possessed by these people was confiscated. Consequently, about 4 million of them died from starvation. It was a forced famine. A shared sense of ethnic identity has resulted; therefore they are fighting the Russians as any independent country with a soul would.
A recent development also brings into the picture another piece of my heritage. Sweden has been a neutral country but now promises anti-tank missiles to support Ukraine. My last name comes from my Swedish heritage - Björling.
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