Vancouver’s Ukrainian protesters exhausted, but determined
Posted March 9, 2014 4:28 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Ukrainian-Canadians spent another Sunday demonstrating against Russia’s recent actions in Crimea, this time outside of Vancouver City Hall. Demonstrators are exhausted and frustrated, but vow to keep on protesting.
Many of the same faces wave the Ukrainian flag every weekend and stand together for hours on the streets of Vancouver. They’re met with cars honking and cheers of support from bystanders, but no politicians show up to hear their concerns.
Yuliya Humanenko, whose family is all back in Ukraine, says it hasn’t been easy. “The thing is I want my nation to see the support. I want them to understand that we are with them, even though we are going away.”
Val Zhukov has been protesting in Vancouver for months. He says even though he’s a Canadian citizen, he is still deeply invested in what’s happening in Crimea, and remains opposed to Russia’s actions, but that has taken a toll. “It’s tiring. Very exhausting and tiring, and stressful. We worry for our people in the Ukraine, we worry what’s going to happen there,” he says, adding he’s had difficulty focusing on work over his concern.
Many people wonder what Ukranian-Canadians gain by demonstrating in Vancouver. Protesters say they hope staying visible in cities across Canada will pressure the Canadian government and other countries to impose sanctions against Russia.
