Update of the Holodomor issues among the Ukrainian diaspora on the pages of the “Svoboda” newspaper in 1933

Abstract

Abstract. Purpose. The exploration of new components in the study of the Holodomor-genocide of 1932–1933 remains a crucial aspect of contemporary Ukrainian historiography. An important source base for reconstructing a comprehensive picture of these events is the periodicals of the Ukrainian diaspora, which regularly informed readers about the situation in Ukraine through their pages. The identification and analysis of such materials make it possible to uncover new historical data, including published testimonies of foreign journalists and letters from peasants, to enrich the history of "aid efforts" by the global community and organizations, and to introduce little-known facts about the protest actions of Ukrainian peasants against the criminal policies of the Soviet authorities into the Ukrainian historiographical discourse. Scientific novelty. The article, based on materials from the Svoboda newspaper from 1933, analyzes selected publications of the Ukrainian diaspora press in the United States regarding the famine in the USSR and the Holodomor in the Ukrainian SSR. The main focus is placed on the content of materials authored by foreign correspondents accredited in the USSR, who had the opportunity to inform the global community about the condition of the Ukrainian peasantry in 1933. Among the issues highlighted by journalists in their articles and reports are the following: the necessity to pay excessive taxes; the lack of food supplies due to their confiscation by the authorities; instances of famine among Ukrainian peasants, and more. It is noted that the Ukrainian diaspora had partial awareness of the socio-economic conditions of Ukrainian peasants in the regions where the Soviet authorities organized an artificial famine, which became part of their genocidal policy. Conclusions. Based on the analysis of the articles published in the Svoboda newspaper, which was issued in the United States in 1933, it can be stated that the Ukrainian diaspora was aware of the plight of Ukrainian peasants. Thanks to the reprinting of the articles by prominent journalists and public figures from other publications, Ukrainians in the United States were informed about the extremely difficult living conditions of the peasants and the facts of widespread starvation.