On April 12, 2013, the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv hosted a day-long conference for Ukrainian women entrepreneurs focusing on business owners of small and medium enterprises. The goal of the event was to promote the importance of Ukrainian women in fostering economic growth, build the confidence of women entrepreneurs to take on leading roles in business and society, provide practical tools for further empowerment, and serve as a platform for networking.
It was less than one year ago when I visited Kyiv as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. Today, seeing the unrest, I am reminded of the importance of US-Ukrainian cultural ties. While in Kyiv, I helped launch the construction of the new American Center to build ties between our two nations. Former US Ambassador John Teft and I knocked down a wall as contractors worked to create a convening place to keep Ukrainians and Americans connecting with one another. I also met with bloggers and media, and was the keynote speaker at the Women’s Forum.
I visited school no. 168 in Kyiv where they are providing mainstream education to students with cognitive and physical disabilities. I met with children learning English through a State Department funded program. I was moved to tears at Babyn Yar, the site of a series of massacres carried out by the Nazis during their campaign against the Soviet Union.
As events unfold, let’s focus on the people as well as the politics. There are beautiful cultural sites throughout the country that must be preserved. Artists, journalists, young people, the LGBT community, and women must have their rights and freedoms.
“let’s focus on the people as well as the politics”
What can this possibly mean? Haven’t the Ukraininan people been thinking and acting politically? Haven’t they gone into the public square literally to argue for their rights? Haven’t they taken responsibility for their own civic lives? Clearly the Ukranian citizens see themselves as political actors. They deserve respect as a whole body politic not catagorized into subgroups: “artists, journalists, young people, the LGBT community” and “children with cognitive and special disabilities” who need patronizing special mention.
The Ukranian people created the space for politics by physically moving into the Square and holding it until a kleptocracy fell. Now they have the hard work of building democratic institutions to sustain their gains. American public diplomacy should be engaging them, supporting them, and working internationally through political argument to delegitimize Russian interference in their lives. So, let’s focus on the politics. It is the only way to genuinely focus on the people with respect.