“Do Americans care about Ukraine,” a reporter asked me the other day. I didn’t know how to reply. Probably, indeed most Americans don’t care, except a few hundred experts, diplomats, and courageous American public officials.
However, there is a group of 1 million Americans who must care about Ukraine. And they have to show up. Their loud voice in the U.S. now is very important, especially on the eve of U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Kyiv. Everyone is scared here of this visit and we don’t know what to expect from it. What can Ukrainian-Americans do?
Organize yourself and make a campaign “Americans care about Ukraine.”
— Call to the White House, State Department, Congress and explain that Ukrainians are not terrible people, the U.S. needs to support rule of law in Ukraine and the fight with the Russian military and the Kremlin’s aggression. Tell your government that Ukraine does not deserve constant public humiliation in the U.S. Ukraine is not the most corrupt country in the world. There are thousands of good people devoted to exposing corruption and building strong democratic institutions in Ukraine. These people have to be praised, supported, but not attacked from the U.S. Already, 14,000 Ukrainians gave up their lives protecting the idea of democracy and dignity from Russian aggression. This sacrifice has to be respected in America.
— Talk to everyone you know in the US and explain to them what is Ukraine and why Ukraine matters for the American security. If you lack arguments, here is an excellent article of ex-U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William B. Taylor.
— Shut down media spreading disinformation about Ukraine and convince everybody you know to do the same.
— Organize protests, other street actions, various other public events to explain to broader American people why Ukraine matters and make it a shame for American lobbyists, lawyers and PR firms, which are spreading disinformation and taking dirty money from people like exiled oligarch Dmytro Firtash.
— Organize discussions at your schools and universities about Ukraine. Invite some real agents of change and doers, who are fighting for Ukrainian independence and success. I am happy to give you a list of amazing Ukrainians who represent the very best of non-corrupt talented brave Ukraine.
— Write collective public letters to various media in the U.S. explaining that you, 1 million American voters, actually do care about Ukraine.
If you lack understanding of the entire situation in Ukraine and need facts, go find Taylor. He is already back in the U.S. Come to Ukraine and talk to me or many other Ukrainians (most will likely talk sincerely off the record).
During the last months, I gave hundreds of interviews to American reporters merely doing fact-checking disinformation from Giuliani, corrupt prosecutor Lutsenko and their associates. There were just 2-3 Ukrainian Americans who came to talk to me though(
And to be honest, I am tired of this battlefield. With our team of just 25 Ukrainians, we are fighting crooks, thugs, corrupt politicians in Ukraine and helping dozens of real agents of change in the new Ukrainian government. This is our battlefield in Ukraine, which is hard itself. And it is super hard to fight simultaneously another one – in the US.
Dear Ukrainian Americans, this is now your turn to take action. This is your duty to defend Ukraine in the US.
You can do a lot.
You have something that I never will – the right to vote in the United States. Therefore whatever you do and say matters enormously. You are the source of power in America and you have to speak up loudly for Ukraine there. Democracy still works in America. You have to stand up now for the sake of democracy not only in Ukraine but also in the U.S. and in the world.
