Politics of Perseverance: Ukrainian Memories of “Them” and the “Other” in Holodomor Survivor Testimony, 1986-1988

 Johnathon K. Vsetecka,
.Unpublished Master of Arts thesis,
 University of Northern Colorado, May 2014.

ABSTRACT
This thesis examines the famine of 1932-33 in Ukraine, now known as theHolodomor, from a survivor’s point of view. The Commission on the Ukraine Famine, beginning work in 1986, conducted an investigation of the famine and collectedtestimony from Holodomor survivors in the United States. This large collection ofsurvivor testimonies sat quietly for many years, even though the Holodomor is now arecognized field of study in history, among other disciplines. A great deal of scholarshipfocuses on the political, genocidal, and ideological aspects of the famine, but few worksexplore the roles of everyday Ukrainian people. This thesis utilizes the testimonies toexamine how everyday survivors construct memories based on their famine experiences.Survivors often share memories of themselves, but they also elaborate on the roles ofothers, which included Soviets, German villagers, and even other Ukrainians. Thesetestimonies transcend the common victim and genocide narratives, showing that not allUkrainians suffered equally. In fact, some survivors note that the famine did not disrupttheir everyday lives at all. Collectively, these testimonies present a more complexnarrative of everyday events in Ukraine and elucidate on the ways that survivorsremember, interpret, and construct memories related to the Holodomor.