The Five Colleges have long been a home for students, artists, and scholars who are from and who study Russia, Eastern Europe, and Eurasia. We have welcomed everyone from young, inquisitive minds wishing to know more about these regions to dissidents and exiles who were fated to never return to them. Our community has always sought to apply its knowledge, curiosity, and love for the cultures and peoples of these spaces such that the world might become a better place–a better home–for all.
The invasion of the sovereign nation Ukraine by the Russian Federation represents the antithesis of these values. We are outraged by the violence that Vladimir Putin has inflicted upon the Ukrainian people. We unequivocally condemn his act of war, and categorically reject the malicious distortions of history by which he seeks to justify it. We stand strong with all of those who resist it—from those in Ukraine who fight for their freedom, to the Russian citizens who risk losing theirs by engaging in anti-war protest. Our thoughts remain with the people and democratically elected leaders of Ukraine, and with everyone in the Pioneer Valley who stands to lose friends and family in this senseless conflict. No to war! Ні війні! Нет войне!
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