Procession honors the victims of Babyn Yar in Kyiv
On September 29, in the evening, a procession was held to commemorate the victims of Babyn Yar. The procession marched across the streets of Podil and stopped near the monument to Hryhoriy Skovoroda, where the rally took place.
The organizers of the Community of St. Egidius and the Youth movement for peace have been choosing this place for the procession for many years. After all, many Jews lived in Podil during the Second World War.
The procession was attended by both adults and children, overall about 150 people.
People held candles in memory of those killed 78 years ago.
“The more time passes, the fewer witnesses remain. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that we preserve our memories. Our memory makes us act!” said the Chairman of the Community of St Egidius in Ukraine Yuriy Lifanse.
We must react every time we see contempt, prejudice, or even violence against the ‘other’ person. We have to meet the "other" person ourselves: a Jew, a Roma, a homeless person, a sick person. The presence of so many young people in the course allows us to look to the future with hope."
At the rally, the movement Youth for peace Anastasia Tapkova read the story of Dina Pronicheva who survived the Babyn Yar.
The speakers also included Borys Zabarko, a prisoner of the Shargorod ghetto, Chairman of the Ukrainian Association of Jews-former prisoners of ghettos and concentration camps and Petro Hryhorychenko, President of the Ukrainian Union of public organizations ‘Congress Romain of Ukraine’. They stressed that it is important to remember the Babyn Yar tragedy so that it will never happen again.
Anna Borysovska, a member of the Youth for Peace Movement, spoke to the youth who came to the action: “Now, in the times of Fakenews, it is very easy to succumb to the sentiments of hatred. We are shown everything from afar, and the whole world seems hostile. The only counteraction to this is our culture and education, which are a necessity of modernity for everyone.”
The community of Saint Egidius is an international organization that operates in more than 70 countries. The community is known for its charitable activities and peace initiatives.
Photos by Oleksandr Panchenko
