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I just had this idea to create a backup space outside of Twitter for my writing on Ukraine. NO SPECIFIC REASON, completely out of the blue.
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Mariam Naiem
1,929 posts
Mariam Naiem
@mariamposts
Ukraine, post-colonialism, popular culture, sometimes personal stories.
Ukrainian πΊπ¦ of Afghan origin π¦π«.
Joined March 2022
- As a Russian-speaking person of color who was born and raised in Ukraine, I believe that I am in a position to speak on the issue of nationalism and neo-Nazism in Ukraine. A long thread π
- ΠΠΎΡΠΎΠ³ΠΈΠ΅ ΡΠΎΡΡΠΈΡΠ½Π΅, ΠΌΠΎΠ³Ρ Π²Π°Ρ ΡΠ²Π΅ΡΠΈΡΡ ΡΡΠΎ ΠΏΡΠΎΡΠΈΠ² ΡΠΎΠ±ΡΠ° ΠΈ ΠΎΠΌΠΎΠ½Π° ΡΠ°Π½ΡΡ Π²ΡΠΆΠΈΡΡ Π² ΡΠ°Π·Ρ Π²ΡΡΠ΅ ΡΠ΅ΠΌ ΠΏΡΠΎΡΠΈΠ² ΠΠ‘Π£.
- Replying to @mariampostsIs Ukraine an ideal country without racism? No. Does the Ukrainian far-right have political prospects? No. Is Russia an ideal country without racism as they imply? No. Does the Russian far-right have political prospects? It already is a fascist state.
- Replying to @mariampostsThe Russian empire erases the culture of its colonies. The captured lands are renamed Russia, ethnically cleansed, and/or forcibly assimilated. For Ukraine, this manifested in several genocidal famines, and a centuries-long policy of elimination of the language and culture.
- Replying to @mariampostsWe hear about it a lot. What we hear less about is how much Ukraine has improved in recent years. Ukrainians have elected a president whose campaign was based on unity across identities. And this president is of Jewish descent.
- Replying to @mariampostsFor example, the media often mention the ultra-right regiment of Azov. Its founding year? 2014. Date of Russia's attack on Ukraine? 2014. The current rise of the Ukrainian nationalist and far-right movements is to large extent caused by Russia's expansive aggression.
- Replying to @mariampostsAs I mentioned, I have experienced racism in Ukraine. But, having lived in the US and Europe, I can say that I was much more likely to encounter institutional racism abroad than in Ukraine. In the last decade, I felt safe in Kyiv (before the full-scale invasion of courseβ¦)
- My father, Naeem, was an Afghan who moved to Ukraine in 1989. He has been working at a Kyiv market for the last 30 years. After his death about a year ago, I painted his eyes at the place where his kiosk was. Now his eyes have become witnesses of this war. Photo by Alina Smutko
- Replying to @mariampostsSame as with Russia and many other countries and peoples in Eurasia, BTW. If you want a quick tour of Russian colonialism, this thread is a great start:when foreigners casually drop βbombing of kyivβ these pics always come to mind. this is what #RussianColonialism did to chechnya and grozny when they tried to leave the empire in 2000. a war crime of horrific scale, but the rest of the world was like βmehβ, so moscow continued
- Replying to @mariampostsRussia used to be an authoritarian state, but now it has all the features of a fascist state. Totalitarian propaganda & censorship, popular support for violence β all of this is a portrait of modern Russia.
- Replying to @mariampostsTo talk about Ukrainian nationalism, we first have to establish the context of the relationship between Ukraine and Russia. These are not just countries sharing a common border. Our relationship is that of an empire and its colony.
- Replying to @mariampostsβ¦and defensive nationalism, poised to preserve traditions and identities.β Defensive nationalism is common to peoples whose identity is in existential danger.
- Replying to @mariampostsNow, let us look more at the far-right movement. As in many European countries, there are right-wing parties in Ukraine. But unlike places such as Hungary, Italy, and others, in Ukraine, such parties have tiny support. statista.com/chart/20094/naβ¦
