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In our reading circles, we discussed the significance of Russia's actions against Ukraine specifically Crimea in the Shouting Absences reading, and how that compares to the cultural impact of book burning that has been seen previously in history. The erasure of Ukraine's culture through Russia's blatant actions cannot even be rationalized or explained as there are signs of their violence throughout the infrastructure. Understanding Russia's rationale and countermeasures tells us a lot about what Russia knows and thinks. They know they are erasing Ukrainian culture and identity through their actions and are trying to take away from that fact by denying it is happening or rationalizing it as they believe Ukraine is on their land.

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Today I learned about the human rights in Crimea and how cultural erasure of Crimean Tatars is very prominent now. The illegal annexation of Crimea and the systemic persecution of Crimean Tatars are seen as part of this aggressive foreign policy, which seeks to suppress and erase distinct national identities and cultural heritage of the Crimean Tatars. I also learned that Ukraine's culture is also slowly trying to be slipped away by others by destroying landmarks and artifacts that are important and valuable to Ukrainians.

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Today, I learned a lot about the different moves that Russia has done in Crimea in order to paint themselves in a certain light while also almost antagonizing Ukrainians. Instances such as the painting a wall full of color, life and art from Ukrainian and Crimean children white. While it was not violent, they were silencing their right of expression and culture and just as we discussed in class, silencing as an act is inherently violent. Russia is playing a game with the public and it's just a bunch of moves and countermoves that are taking place in Crimea that has also affected the opinions of those living there.

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I really enjoyed talking to a peer today about the "6 signs forgotten to be erased". We had a really interesting discussion about how things aren't really erased, like fossils. Or how even though these sites may be inactive they still have other purposes and uses. I think this idea of inactivity and relics/ruins serving as momentum for conversations about time and violence and culture.

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In today’s class we discussed how the Russians have been silent on the war going on in Ukraine and their efforts to erase Ukrainian language and culture. Russia has many examples of trying to get rid of Ukrainian history by getting rid of signs and plaques in Ukrainian and burning Ukrainian literature. This is a prime example of Russia trying to get rid of and erase Ukraine from history, replacing it with its more “sophisticated” language. Russian soldiers have also been keeping quiet on these situations saying nothing to the general public and the people of Ukraine.

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I think that a powerful lesson I learned today involved the total destruction of artifacts and cultural landmarks at the hands of Russia. They are trying to strip as much culture and connection to Ukraine from its citizens as possible. This is a crime against humanity and is awful given the importance now more than ever to preserve artifacts and historical collections.

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So Today we just discussed how Russia is continuing to oppress people and their history of invading land that doesn't belong to them. We discussed how Reshat Ametov he protested against the occupation of Crimea and was detained and kidnapped and very bad things happened to him. This event causing fear in other people from protesting. Its a very horrible thing to occur. Russia thinks they can do anything they please. We also discussed Russia's history of land expansion in Ukraine. Catherine the great expanded into Crimea just like Russia did today. So their has always been this history of invasions from Russia. In all Russia is just an expansionist power and if anyone disagrees with them they silence them.

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In the reading circles the prevailing issue that emerged through our discussion is the systematic erasure of the Ukrainian identity. I think during the Russian invasion of Ukraine Russia destroyed over 60 museums. Even though this explicitly erased the history of Ukraine, they can still hold onto their intangibles through music, art, and language. This can be cultivated and carried on from generation to generation. Russia has deliberately ignored and condemned Ukraine and its independence and tried to defame them; however, Ukrainians are still able to stay optimistic through different forms of media.

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A big focus of my day, from one of my discussion groups, was Reshat Ametov's kidnap and murder when he was protesting the occupation. This story is horrifying and makes a big impression on the people in Crimea and beyond. It instills fear into people of speaking up for what they believe in, or against the occupation. Earlier in the class, I focused on the burning of books and how it's a direct way to destroy one's history, culture, and identity. It sends a message across the world, and overtly reveals the oppressor's mentality about the oppressed group. Finally, I learned about Catherine the Great 250 years ago and compared her to Putin.

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Today I had a realization about the Russification of Crimean. Through Russia's acts, the painting over Ukrainian children's artwork, and removing signs, everything is tranquil. The reason why we aren't seeing it on the news is because there's no violence, they're being careful to stay under the radar. Therefore, it's hard for the citizens to speak up and against what's going on. They are displaying themselves as peaceful. But this silence, and their silencing of Ukrainian culture, is violence. They are changing the whole narrative and trying to change history, the world by not paying attention, is letting me. It's makes me angry and frustrated.

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Something I saw brought up during the discussions was the ideas of fear and control using propaganda. By controlling with fear, Crimea is doing this to make their people not protest and stick up for themselves which brings up a lack of human rights. This reminds me of communistic propaganda, as well as Nazi ways from WW2. Something else I saw was how Russia believes that they are just taking back land that was once thiers. They feel they were robbed of Ukraine and they feel its their right to take it back. Obviously this is not the case.

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Today I learned more about the violence in Ukraine and the erasure of Crimean culture from the Volvach readings. It's important to see the diversity of Ukrainians and people in that region; seeing them as a monolith and simply a homogenous, oppressed people is not productive. I also learned about the subtle indoctrination that Russians are trying to impose on Crimea. The "polite people" statue that they erected shortly after Crimea's annexation depicts an unmasked soldier holding a cat. The statue attempts to humanize the soldier to Crimeans and give the message that they come in peace. However, it was only following the Crimean annexation that Putin admitted that the men who seized buildings and other structures in Ukraine in 2014 were Russian. Clearly, this statue was placed to give a facade of compassion and well-meaning.

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Today in class I learned about many of the tactics that Russia has used. Before they first invaded they had lied about having pieces of training going on near the border of Ukraine and Russia, they gave their soldiers completely unmarked unidentifiable uniforms, and Russia supplied lots of weapons to their soldiers. Then overnight Russia used every advantage it made for itself to invade Ukraine, but they didn't kill or plunder anything yet, the unmarked soldiers went straight to Ukraine's Military bases and started taking them over. Surrounding the bases, outgunning the Ukraine military, some bases had no choice but to surrender. Then I learned about how Russia was hiding their actions from the world and going to great lengths to create mass confusion and lie to all of their citizens.

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Todays class was very interesting because I had the opportunity to read the input of many students and respond to them. I feel that I learned a lot from my peers and their responses to the many issues in the war. What stuck with me most were the many ways in which Russia continues to find news ways to belittle Ukraine and work to destroy any unity, whether it comes from culture, language, literature, etc. It seems that Russia will find any way, either big or small to destroy Ukraine simply because the government feels entitled to their land.

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Today my preconceived thoughts of reasoning on both sides have been shifted. My internal belief now has a basis: Putin's "reasoning," motives, and effect are all as deconstructive and overpowering to others as to himself and his agenda, pushing his regime and demonstrating "power." The counterintuitive nature of actions and "reasoning" behind doing any actions are completely unjustified for humane, ethical, and now logical reasons. Deconstructing Ukrainian language as "low-class" and Ukrainians in general as low-class through that imposed system, and then silencing them through erasure of all physical history, is as inevitable as it is ineffective. If by the same reasoning they deem Ukrainian history as irrelevant and non-existent, then the imposed erasure is low-effort and inconsistent. This leaves behind remnants and creates a topic of conversation on what is "no longer there," and foments exhumation of culture and nationalism across all of those affected, in this case people who have a strong connection, culturally as well as socially, with Ukraine.

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Today in class, I delved into the complexities of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I learned about Russia's strategies, including misleading claims and covert military operations, and how they resulted in the swift takeover of key Ukrainian positions. We discussed the chilling effect of Reshat Ametov's murder on those speaking out against the occupation and the devastating cultural impact, such as the destruction of Ukrainian museums and the burning of books. Yet, amidst the erasure of tangible heritage, I found hope in Ukraine's intangible assets, like music and art, which continue to unite and uplift its people, despite Russia's aggressive attempts to suppress their identity.

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Today I analyzed the concept of "6 signs forgotten button erased" from the text in my small group. I learned about how certain unoccupied areas of Ukraine have "artifacts" that are no longer in use (such as train stations), but were not destroyed. Although it wasn't in the text, I believe that this is a symbol of hope to the people of Ukraine, becauses it raises the question, why weren't they erased? I then learned about an individual protester who was wrongfully tortured and murdered, and it was very saddening to hear about, and eye opening to the amount of influence and power Russia has over Ukraine.