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The Hidden Canon: Discover Ukrainian literary classics

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'My first impression was it's hell' — Belarusian prison memoir brings attention back to Lukashenko's repressions
Culture

'My first impression was it's hell' — Belarusian prison memoir brings attention back to Lukashenko's repressions

by Kate Tsurkan

In a Belarusian prison, it's a simple note — "We are with you" — hidden inside a chocolate bar from a volunteer aid package that can move political prisoners to tears. In their tightly monitored environment, where isolation itself is a form of punishment, such gestures take on an almost sacred significance. Hanna Komar's memoir "When I'm Out Of Here: Staying Human in a Dictator's Jail" details how these fleeting acts of solidarity become a means of holding on when living in an authoritarian reg

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'My first impression was it's hell' — Belarusian prison memoir brings attention back to Lukashenko's repressions

In a Belarusian prison, it's a simple note — "We are with you" — hidden inside a chocolate bar from a volunteer aid package that can move political prisoners to tears. In their tightly monitored environment, where isolation itself is a form of punishment, such gestures take on an almost sacred significance. Hanna Komar's memoir "When I'm Out Of Here: Staying Human in a Dictator's Jail" details how these fleeting acts of solidarity become a means of holding on when living in an authoritarian reg

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Our reporting on literature, films, art, and traditions from Ukraine and the latest news on culture in Eastern Europe.

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Ukrainian culture has survived centuries of Russian attempts to appropriate Ukrainian art, silence Ukrainian artists, and erase the Ukrainian language. Modern Ukrainian writers, filmmakers, and musicians — some of whom are serving on the front lines — continue to develop Ukrainian culture and fight for Ukraine’s future.

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On June 2, Russia carried out its largest ballistic and hypersonic missile attack of the year. On June 15, it nearly surpassed that record. The attacks point to a disturbing change in tactics: The Kremlin may be refining a new model of strikes on Ukrainian cities, relying on concentrated salvos of ballistic and hypersonic missiles to inflict maximum damage as Ukraine faces a growing shortage of Patriot interceptors. The two mass strikes in June followed a similar pattern. Russia launched more

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