"I hated the government lies and propaganda in Belarus. Russia has started many wars, and Ukraine is a logical continuation of its fight for power. I understand Ukrainians remembering the Holodomor, and their willingness to fight back for freedom. We have to learn from history.”
Leon Karan
Born in Minsk, Belarus
"I am a Jew from Ukraine. We experienced great antisemitism there, but after Ukraine gained independence in 1991, Jewish life kind of blossomed. Hard times are coming for the Russians as well. Nobody wants to receive the dead bodies of their children. It’s tragic on both sides.”
Anna Shkolnik
Born in Kviv, Ukraine
"What’s going on right now is completely atrocious. I never thought that it would happen. It doesn’t matter who wins, there cannot be winners in this war. My only hope is that there will not be a nuclear war in Europe. That’s what I’m afraid of. Putin is like a wounded animal, willing to do anything.”
Elena Clark
Born in Kviv, Ukraine
"The audacity and scope of the attack is just shocking. The difficult part is that Ukrainians have historically been very brutal to Jews. Nevertheless, Putin is a brutal dictator who is ruthless to his own people. Whatever Russia’s grievances, they have no place invading a sovereign county.”
Yves Apel
Born in Kishinev, Belarus
LISTEN: Listen to the lastest episode of The Shpiel on Hamilton podcast in which Jewish Hamiltonians from the Former Soviet Union share their insights into the crisis in Ukraine