Holodomor // 1932-1933
NEVER AGAIN |
IN MEMORY OF THE VICTIMS OF THE HOLODOMOR
In loving memory of the millions of Ukrainians who died during the state-organized famine in the early 30's. Soviet ruler, Joseph Stalin, created an authoritarian government which promoted Soviet nationalism and communism. This ultra-nationalism would massacre approximately 8 million Ukrainians in the span of a year. The Holodomor and the Soviet union wished to break the spirit of the Ukrainian nation and, ultimately, their nationalism.
PAVLO MAKOHON // UKRAINE, 1993A MEMOIR FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF A 14 YEAR OLD BOY DURING 1933 AND HIS EFFORTS TO SURVIVE Her eyes were closed and I thought she was already dead. Half afraid, I moved towards her on leaden legs and stood by her side, helpless. Then I thought of taking her hand. I picked it up and felt for the pulse. It was barely there, but she was still alive. She was completely unconscious and couldn't see me. I went outside and collected some dry twigs. I made a small fire and began to heat some water. Then I crushed some dry cherry sprigs and boiled some tea. I also made a watery soup from whatever I could find lying around. I poured some of the tea into a glass, mixed in a little of sugar I'd brought, and carefully began to pour it through my mother's lips. As her lips were hard to open, I had to keep them apart with one hand while I fed her with the other. It was midnight and deathly quiet, and I knew no one would see me. So I sat until morning pouring the tea at intervals between my mother's lips until, at the break of dawn, her organism finally responded and she opened her eyes, though she was still unable to speak. Then I gave her some soup. Around midday, my mother started to mumble something but I couldn't understand what she wanted to say. I continued to feed her and try to build up her strength. By the evening she recognized me and shakily exclaimed 'Pavlik, is that you?' 'Yes, mama, I've come home', and I thanked God for saving her life. Throughout the day I kept inside the house, afraid of someone noticing me. I didn't doubt that the activists were still prowling the village. I took care of my mother, and, on the next day, with my help, she managed to sit up, and even stand. Then, by carefully leaning against the walls she could even walk a little and attend to her needs. After four days had passed, my mother was strong enough to talk normally, and we told one another of all that had happened to each of us. It was spring time and things were beginning to grow in the gardens and fields, such as onions and small potatoes. But the harvest was still many months away. I became anxious again, for the food I had brought was not enough to sustain both my mother and myself for much longer than a week. And then what would we do? I decided to try and steal some food from the activists' fields during the night, hoping that together with my parcel, this would last my mother until harvest-time. However, I, myself, would have to return to Sofino-Brodsky as there wouldn't be enough food for both of us. Mother was forced to agree to this for there was no other solution, but she was loath to lose me again so soon. And so we planned my departure. I hid some of my mother's food so no one would confiscate it. Just before I left I found some young onions which I took with me to sell along the way. Whilst in the village I had contacted my god-mother, whom I'd found in a similar plight to my mother. She had a son, Andry, who was starving, and she begged me to take him along as his last chance of survival. I readily agreed to this as travelling in a pair in such dangerous times was preferable to travelling alone. |
ABOUT JOSEPH STALINJoseph Stalin was born in the peasant village of Gori, Georgia in 1879, and was a political leader and dictator of the Soviet Union for two decades. Stalin became the dictator after Vladimir Lenin’s death, and established his new authoritarian government which sought out industrialization and collectivization. These new policies would lead to the mass genocide of the Ukrainians, and also led to millions of deaths caused by starvation. During the Holodomor, Stalin was also modernizing Russia and helping to fight Naziism. After World War II, arrangements for Stalin’s assassinations were revealed, causing him to leave and eventually commit suicide on March 5, 1953. |