Putin Claims Hes Ridding Ukraine Of Nazis. Ukraines Jewish Population Knows Better. – HuffPost
Posted By admin on May 10, 2022
In a corner of the Choral Synagogue in the western Ukrainian town of Drohobych, theres a stark display of pictures detailing the bloody and tragedy-strewn history of the areas Jewish community. One is especially horrifying: a black-and-white image of the corpses of four Jewish children killed by Nazis during World War II.
If you take a close look, there are parallels with right now, said Leonid Golberg, a 66-year-old member of the local Jewish Board, pointing to the image. Russia is now doing the same things in Ukraine.
Golberg is a senior member of the small, 40-member Jewish community of Drohobych, a town nestled in the rolling hills of Ukraine that grow into the Carpathian Mountains just a few miles further west.
The town used to have a far larger Jewish population. More than 12,000 Jews 40% of the towns population were killed in mass shootings, by starvation in the Nazi-established ghetto, or transported to the Beec extermination camp, just one small part of the systematic genocide of Jews during the Holocaust. In Drohobych, only 400 Jewish people survived the war.
The people of Drohobych know about Nazis. Which makes it all the more appalling that Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed his invasion of Ukraine was meant to de-Nazify the country a statement he reiterated on Monday.
On Monday, Putin delivered a speech at the annual Victory Day Parade on Moscows Red Square. During those remarks, Putin said a clash with the neo-Nazis, the Banderites, backed by the United States and their junior partners, was inevitable.
Putin also told Russians they were fighting for the Motherland, for its future, so that no one forgets the lessons of the Second World War, so that there is no place in the world for executioners, punishers and Nazis.
The claims may gain traction in the increasingly insular Russia, where the flow of information and news is becoming more restricted by the day. But nowhere remembers the lessons of the Second World War better than the town of Drohobych, the history of which lays bare the hypocrisy and deceit of Putins claims.
Far from learning the lessons of the Second World War, Golberg says Russia is repeating history, only on a wider scale. And, in an attempt to justify it, Putin is invoking claims about Jews that the whole civilized world said was a red line crossed.
In the same way that Nazis killed 6 million Jews during World War II, they are destroying Ukraine as a state, Golberg said. They already killed over 300 children, theyre killing thousands of civilians and have destroyed whole cities.
Golbergs voice was raspy from a recent bout of COVID-19 and the half-hourly cigarette breaks he took as he showed HuffPost around the synagogue.
One of the photos on display is from 1939. It shows a Soviet officer shaking hands with a Nazi officer after the two sides met after their successful invasion and partition of Poland, a result of the secret pact Josef Stalin entered into with Adolf Hitler shortly before the outbreak of World War II.
A sign behind the two men reads Drohobych, pointing in the direction of the town just a few kilometers down the road from where they stand.
Ukraines geography blessed it with lands so fertile its known the breadbasket of Europe, but cursed it to repeatedly being at the mercy of larger and more powerful neighbors to both its east and west as they battled for power and influence in Europe.
Nazi Germany captured Drohobych in 1941 and decimated the towns Jewish population.
Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sparked outrage by claiming Hitler had Jewish blood and that Jews were complicit in their own genocide, adding: For a long time now, weve been hearing the wise Jewish people say that the biggest anti-Semites are the Jews themselves.
Despite Putin reportedly offering an apology for Lavrovs remarks, Golberg remained incensed.
Lavrov said what he said because its actually them that are the thieves and the criminals, Golberg said. What theyre doing here is not only genocide, it can be called Ukrainicide.
After the Nazis were defeated, Drohobych and Ukraine fell under the Soviet sphere. The towns Jewish community continued to be persecuted and the Choral Synagogue was appropriated by the authorities and used as a warehouse, falling into disrepair for decades.
Drohobychs Jewish population is small, but proud. A huge renovation project starting in 2014 restored the Choral Synagogue to its former glory. It forms one part of a trinity of notable holy buildings in Drohobych, alongside the Eastern Orthodox St. Georges Church and the Catholic Church of Saint Bartholomew a nod to the towns multicultural heritage.
Golberg was baffled by the idea that the country in which he lives and practices freely as a Jew has been invaded by an army claiming to be fighting Nazism.
Theyre saying there are Nazis in Ukraine, but lets look at the facts, said Golberg. He noted the diversity of the Ukrainian army.
Jews serving in the battalions of the Ukrainian army and Ukrainian territorial defense were celebrating Passover last month. Muslims in Kyiv celebrated Ramadan, Golberg said. So where is the Nazism?
As HuffPost left the synagogue, Golberg was already busy with his next appointment: leading a free tour of the synagogue for displaced people who have recently arrived in Drohobych after being forced to leave their homes elsewhere in the country.
The war has impacted everyone, he said. Before people didnt really fully understand what was going on and what Russia is, but now its very different everyone understands what Russia is, that theres a war, that we have to fight until were victorious and until then we wont have peace.
Here is the original post:
Putin Claims Hes Ridding Ukraine Of Nazis. Ukraines Jewish Population Knows Better. - HuffPost
- RELEASE: Gottheimer Helps Lead House Passage of Bipartisan Legislation Condemning the Rise in Antisemitism - Josh Gottheimer - May 20th, 2022
- Jewish in the big leagues: Power hitter Shawn Green dishes at White House event - Forward - May 20th, 2022
- Best Things To Do This Weekend In Los Angeles And SoCal: May 20 - 22 - LAist - May 20th, 2022
- North Bay recognized for standing up to hate and racism - My North Bay Now - May 20th, 2022
- Letters To The Editor May 20, 2022 - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com - May 20th, 2022
- People, Places and Things - Birmingham Times - May 20th, 2022
- Peggy Tarr: In the month of May - Evanston RoundTable - May 12th, 2022
- Oregon Rises Above Hate to host Old Town event for AAPI Heritage Month - KOIN.com - May 12th, 2022
- Death of journalism professor who helped revive Judaism in Lincoln after 750 years - Jewish News - May 12th, 2022
- Humans of New York featured this onetime rabbinical student and readers have donated $1.2M to his passion project - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic... - May 12th, 2022
- Min Jin Lee wants to keep building on the Asian-American experience in real life and on the page - The 19th* - May 12th, 2022
- Whats open in the Mid-Hudson Valley for May 12, 2022 - The Daily Freeman - May 12th, 2022
- Liberation Is Jewish History. Let's Make It Our Future, Too. - OtherWords - May 10th, 2022
- Stunning Rise in Anti-Semitic Incidents in the US - Daily Kos - May 10th, 2022
- May is merry, and the UO has the arts events to prove it - AroundtheO - April 30th, 2022
- In the conspiracy world, Judaism is always suspect' - Haaretz - April 30th, 2022
- Why these Israeli farmers became heroes after killing their crops (hint: its in the Bible) - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic Agency - April 20th, 2022
- Pew's Religious Landscape Study Shows There Are US Jews and Then There Are Committed Jewish Americans - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com - April 20th, 2022
- Russia preparing to celebrate Victory Day: What could this mean for Ukraine? - NewsNation Now - April 20th, 2022
- Passover 2022: What is Passover, Passover greetings, and Passover dates 2022 - The Scotsman - April 20th, 2022
- 'Living history': meet the Mosul residents rebuilding their city - Art Newspaper - April 20th, 2022
- Things to Do This Week in LA [4-18-2022 to 4-22-2022] - We Like L.A. - April 20th, 2022
- 'The sky's the limit': Gesher Disability Resources working to meet needs of Jewish students with disabilities - The Arizona Republic - April 11th, 2022
- What the UAE taught Egypt on doing business with Israel - Haaretz - April 11th, 2022
- A work camp in the lowest place on earth is Israel's latest tourist attraction - Haaretz - April 11th, 2022
- What to do this week, from Slay and Ecolution to August Wilson and Charlie Chaplin - NEXTpittsburgh - April 11th, 2022
- For Holocaust educators in Poland, the war in Ukraine is more than just a teachable moment - Jewish Insider - March 24th, 2022
- Kosher rafting on the Jordan River: ultra-Orthodox tourists found their wild side - Haaretz - March 24th, 2022
- Orange High Schools Jessica Brown named Kiwanis Senior of the Month - cleveland.com - March 24th, 2022
- 'At 15, you can grow up': Scenes of hope and anguish from Poland's Ukrainian border - Forward - March 24th, 2022
- The Ruzhiner Rebbe And Me - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com - March 24th, 2022
- Editorial: Boycotting companies that keep operating in Russia is the right thing to do - Los Angeles Times - March 24th, 2022
- Israeli minister heads to Poland as Ukraine refugees pour across border - The Times of Israel - March 8th, 2022
- Threats, vitriol aimed at women in positions of power - Detroit News - March 8th, 2022
- Things To Do This Week In London: 28 February-6 March 2022 - Londonist - March 8th, 2022
- Turkey and Israel: A Relationship Unlikely to be Fully Rekindled - Foreign Policy Research Institute - March 3rd, 2022
- I've listened to racism without challenging it - that won't happen again - Heritage Florida Jewish News - March 3rd, 2022
- Holocaust survivor killed in traffic accident Jessica Seinfelds meatless meals The meaning of Maus - Jewish Telegraphic Agency - February 11th, 2022
- Rep. Andy Levin the 'most corrosive' on Israel - Heritage Florida Jewish News - February 11th, 2022
- Fayetteville man one of seven removed from commission aimed at preserving Holocaust-related sites - Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - January 30th, 2022
- Top Canadian agent smokes out long-lost relatives with new title The Cigar Factory - The Times of Israel - January 24th, 2022
- Things to do in Cincinnati this week: Jan. 24-30 - The Cincinnati Enquirer - January 24th, 2022
- St. Augustine celebrates rich history during Jewish ... - January 20th, 2022
- Giving to the Golani Brigade - Heritage Florida Jewish News - January 20th, 2022
- Cultural and holiday traditions are celebrated - liherald - January 20th, 2022
- BWW Opera Preview: If You're Dreaming of Live Opera, Here Are Some to Think About This Spring - Broadway World - January 20th, 2022
- From reverent to raunchy, vast Yiddish archives are reunited online J. - The Jewish News of Northern California - January 11th, 2022
- Get to the rec center to get fit in 2022: Talk of the Towns - cleveland.com - January 11th, 2022
- When Is Jewish Heritage Month? chicagojewishnews.com - December 24th, 2021
- When Is Jewish American Heritage Month 2019 ... - December 24th, 2021
- 18 noteworthy Jews who died in 2021 | The Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle - thejewishchronicle.net - December 24th, 2021
- Proud Jews Walking: The Eicha Problem and The Rebbe's Solution - Jewish Journal - December 24th, 2021
- Construction unearths parts of Crimean synagogue long thought to be destroyed - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic Agency - December 24th, 2021
- The inhumanity of identity politics - Spiked - December 24th, 2021
- May Is Jewish American Heritage Month? chicagojewishnews.com - December 16th, 2021
- Special Observances - December 16th, 2021
- This is not my holiday season. Please leave me out of it. - Forward - November 25th, 2021
- Sweden's national theater stages its first ever Yiddish production J. - The Jewish News of Northern California - November 25th, 2021
- New York City Opera to Present The World Premiere Of THE GARDEN OF THE FINZI-CONTINIS - Broadway World - November 25th, 2021
- Things to do around Boston this weekend and beyond - The Boston Globe - November 25th, 2021
- Swedens national theater stages its first ever Yiddish production - Jewish Telegraphic Agency - November 18th, 2021
- How the Bolsheviks faced a boycott right after the Revolution - Russia Beyond the Headlines - November 18th, 2021
- SJN: Jewish Book Month is officially underway in Montreal - The Suburban Newspaper - October 30th, 2021
- Klobuchar and Wasserman Schultz have their own breast cancer stories. This is how they want Congress to fight it. - USA TODAY - October 30th, 2021
- New Yorkers with Sephardic roots say Spain is breaking its promise of citizenship - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic Agency - October 18th, 2021
- School District of Palm Beach County to hold presentation to honor Hispanic heritage, Holocaust - WPTV.com - October 18th, 2021
- From Judeo-Greek to Karaim, Oxford courses on 12 rare Jewish languages aim to keep heritages alive - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic Agency - October 18th, 2021
- Wizards unveil themes and promotional schedule for 2021-22 season - WashingtonWizards.com - October 2nd, 2021
- October's here: 10 cool (and creepy) things to do in the Wilmington area this weekend - StarNewsOnline.com - October 2nd, 2021
- OPINION EXCHANGE | Exhibit honors humanity in the face of horror - Minneapolis Star Tribune - September 28th, 2021
- Museum Of Jewish Heritage To Examine Superheroes And The 'Jewish Multiverse' - Broadway World - September 22nd, 2021
- Torah stolen by Nazis for post-Holocaust Jewish museum back in use in Prague - The Times of Israel - September 22nd, 2021
- 13-year-old dog has 'Bark Mitzvah' with full coming-of-age ceremony - New York Post - September 22nd, 2021
- Top 5 things to do in Cincinnati this weekend: Sept. 24-26 - The Cincinnati Enquirer - September 22nd, 2021
- National Hispanic Heritage Month 2021: Events in Houston - Houston On The Cheap - September 17th, 2021
- A post-Yom Kippur apology: Sorry I dont have anything to write about this week. - Forward - September 17th, 2021
- Calendar of Events September 15 to October 3 - longislandweekly.com - September 16th, 2021
- UK urged to help further Abraham Accords as Commons marks first anniversary - Jewish News - September 16th, 2021
- What To Do This Week: September 15 20 The Nob Hill Gazette - Nob Hill Gazette - September 14th, 2021
- Featured Story: Creating a UofL Health System That Works for the City, State and Patients - The Lane Report - September 14th, 2021
Comments