E-mail: leskova.irina.pr@gmail.com
Tel.: +380 (48) 237-42-15
Odessa, Ukraine Independent Researcher
The formation of identity in modern Ukraine is connected, in particular, with attitudes towards many aspects of its history, primarily the history of the Soviet period. The most important of these is the attitude towards the Great Patriotic War, the term used in former republics of the Soviet Union to refer to WWII. In 2014–2015, after the sharp deterioration in Russian-Ukrainian relations, a new official conception of Victory Day was developed as part of the process of de-communization. One’s attitude towards the reform of the holiday became a test of loyalty not only for politicians and ordinary citizens, but also for entire regions of the country, which, as is known, differ in their level of pro-Russian sentiment. The conservative, pro-Russian opposition to the reform process, which was drawn into it but was unable to oppose it openly, often expresses its point of view through symbolic action. In Odessa, for instance, the grassroots symbolic expression of this attitude is an emphatic adherence to the traditional and “pro-Russian” forms of the ritual associated with Victory Day. This includes ignoring the new date of the holiday, May 8 (many fewer Odessa residents turn out for the events organized by the central government on that date as compared to their participation in old-style events on May 9); the use of forbidden symbols such as red flags, Soviet military images and songs, and St. George ribbons (a traditional mark of remembrance of those who died in WWII); parading with portraits of war veterans, following the model of the “Immortal Regiment” (a patriotic society with its own special practice of street marching; while this practice began in Russia as ideologically neutral, in modern Ukraine it is perceived as “pro-Russian”); and the use of “undesirable” vocabulary, for example, use of the expression “Great Patriotic War” instead of “World War II.”
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