August 31, 2020/ 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Zoom Webinar

UCLA Department of Slavic, East European and Eurasian Languages and Cultures and Russian Flagship Program lecture by Sasha Razor. Cosponsored by CERS.

For the Zoom link, please send a message indicating your interest to kresin@ad.ucla.edu


Hosted by Sasha Razor, this event focuses on Belarus, the ongoing protests, and their relevance for Russian area studies.

Recommended preparation: Sasha’s “short take” from Los Angeles Review of Books (The Lesson of Belarus).

Additional links  

Articles 

This is an introductory reading list on the topic of the Belarusian elections by the journalists who either have the insider knowledge about Belarus and/or are from this region. Browse and familiarize yourself. 

• Masha Gessen’s articles in New Yorker:

“After a Rigged Election, Belarus Crushes Protests Amid an Information Blackout”

“We Were Locked Up in One Country and Released Into Another”: Horror and Hope as Protests in Belarus Continue”

• David Kurkovskiy’s Op-Ed at The Guardian: Belarusians are speaking as one: Alexander Lukashenko’s time is up

• Valzhyna Mort’s Op-Ed in the New York Times: “My Country is Under Attack” 

• Marya Sadovskaya-Komlach provides perspectives on Belarus in Politico and Foreign Affairs:

Belarus Goes its Own Way

Why the EU’s Targeted Sanctions on Belarus Won’t Work

• Henry Deane on Svetlana Tikhanovskaya in the Guardian: Svetlana Tikhanovskaya: from ‘Chernobyl child’ in Ireland to political limelight

Music links

Browse and familiarize yourself with the following music videos:

“Перемен”

• Виктор Цой в фильме “Асса” (1987): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9msmCgJdr24
• Lyrics in Russian and English: http://russmus.net/song/7257
• “Перемен” на демонстрации в Минске: https://www.facebook.com/currenttimetv/videos/243168953423291/

“Муры”

• Сергей Тихановский поет “Муры”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OodAzQs80oI

• “Свободный театр” поет “Муры” и стен тюрьмы на Окрестино: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuirhU1tuQI

“Не быць скотам”

• Сергей Михалок: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSwmW3OxquY
• Стихотворение Янки Купалы “Хто ты гэтки?” (1908) на белорусском и русском: http://www.florida-rus.com/2013/07/ne-byt-skotom
• Исполнение “Не быць скотам” возле здания минской филармонии: https://www.facebook.com/douhushau/videos/3487351874662676/
• Сергей Михалок “Воины света” (одна из самых знаменитых песен Майдана 2014г.): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8HqRH5cHPo

Art links 

• Interview with Artur Klinau/Sasha Razor on the role of an artist in contemporary Belarus

https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/from-the-sun-city-of-dreams-to-the-city-of-angels-a-conversation-with-belarusian-artist-and-author-artur-klinau/

• https://www.calvertjournal.com/articles/show/12056/belarusian-artists-protests
   
• Dreams of Belarusian people about Alexander Lukashenko by Tatsiana Zamirovskaya: https://pen.org/dreams-of-belarusian-people-about-alexander-lukashenko/?fbclid=IwAR25ZxBZ8_nZFjzOrW95Aq0I8rT56aBaxgeV8u1oORnSKqXwWAwvdxqd10I 

Additional reading and watching:

• Meduza Belarusian Summer Playlist: https://meduza.io/en/slides/a-belarusian-summer-playlist

• David R. Marples, Understanding Ukraine and Belarus: A Memoir (2020). Download for free: https://www.e-ir.info/publication/understanding-ukraine-and-belarus-a-memoir/?fbclid=IwAR2kWa9TAV-31Qgzliv6-WZPzrPTMQJxqvrWLmIUfBgW9m60nYfD4nSPcjM

• Poem by Julia Cimafiejeva: https://lithub.com/the-stone-of-fear/?fbclid=IwAR0VO9ue_wfb5jGOSbFlxebgMYVXlV8uu5IS1_w_g3-ZL_wHcvVInF2zA1Y

Sponsor(s): Center for European and Russian Studies, Department of Slavic, East European & Eurasian Languages & Cultures, Russian