The Memory Keeper of Kyiv

by Erin Litteken

“It’s the same story every time, for centuries. Everyone wants Ukraine’s fertile soil for their own, and nobody wants to let Ukrainians rule it.”

Between 1932 and 1933, one in every eight Ukrainians died in this manmade famine. And it was absolutely manmade. During this time, the USSR exported tons of apples and tomato paste, barrels of pickles, honey, milk, and almost two million tons of grain in 1932 alone.

Two books I highly recommend to start with are Anne Applebaum’s Red Famine and Miron Dolot’s Execution by Hunger. For a list of the books and resources I used in my research, including virtual museum visits, survivor accounts, recent research on the statistics of this terror–famine, and links to organizations dedicated to keeping the memory of the Holodomor victims alive, please visit erinlitteken.com.