February 25, 2022
work from home for justice
Dear friends,
Well, it’s been an especially rough week here on earth. With the Russians now claiming that Ukraine is in thrall to Neo-Nazis who are persecuting Russian-speaking people, I wonder if the pro-Trump factions here are confused about which side to take.
But none of it is funny. Ukrainian soldiers, refusing to surrender, told a Russian officer to go fuck himself. Then they were killed.
I have been relying heavily on Heather Cox Richardson for her analysis of what’s happening. She noted that Russian citizens have been protesting the war and there have been many arrests.
According to Nastassia Astrasheuskaya, a Financial Times reporter in Moscow, the Kremlin had expected the public would support the attack on Ukraine. Prominent celebrities, including those who rely on the state to make a living, also came out against the war.
She also wrote about the hack that took down the RT media outlet and a platoon of Russian soldiers that surrendered to Ukrainian troops north of Kyiv, realizing that what they thought was a reconnaissance mission was meant to be an invasion.
Here in New York, where the greatest concentration of Ukrainian immigrants in the US reside, there are protests of the invasion and support from the Russian immigrant community. New Yorkers have been lining up outside Veselka on 2nd Avenue. Eating blintzes and borscht will not stop the war AND it probably can’t hurt.
At the rally in Times Square, people chanted:
Hands off Ukraine!
Stop the war!
Putin is a killer!
A pro-democracy group, Razom for Ukraine, organized the rally and provided resources including fact sheets, videos, the best groups to donate to, and text for letters to US elected officials.
Support Ukraine! Actions are from Razom for Ukraine.
There’s a lot that I don’t yet understand about what’s going on in Ukraine and in Putin’s head. It feels crazy. I haven’t yet read all of this, but it might be helpful if your trying to get a grasp of the situation.
Read “4 Times Opinion Writers Analyze Russia’s Invasion.”
Yesterday, about a hundred people showed up to City Hall to protest the mayor’s appointments of three men with long records of anti-gay positions. We should keep the pressure on the mayor to reverse course, as protesters noted that the apologies produced by the mayor’s press office “do not pass the smell test”:
Contact the mayor to let him know that we expect him to pick exemplary people to do the people’s work. This action is ready-made.
Have a good weekend and take care of yourselves!
with love,
L