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Discussion and lecture: In search of lost solidarity, or why there are no Ukrainians in the exhibition with Valeriia Zubatenko, Vira Protskykh and Hanna Tsyba

More than a year after the russian invasion of Ukraine, it became clear that the basic rule “nothing about us without us” is not working and remains a theoretical construct. Thus, Ukrainian cultural workers will come together to speak to speak firsthand about what kind of solidarity they are looking for and why it is so difficult to find it in Western Europe. In the format of a panel discussion, Ukrainian politically engaged cultural figures and artists will talk about the difference between the anti-imperial and anti-colonial struggle of the Ukrainian people and those of people from other parts of the former USSR. Moreover, they will explain why it is wrong to mix agendas and unethical to organize events with people from russia and Ukraine in the same room.

The FATA collective invites representatives of Berlin-based cultural institutions to think about the weak spots of the field together and look for ways to change this situation.

Valeriia Zubatenko is a Ukrainian leftist feminist, researcher, artist and activist of the organization Social Movement. She has devoted the last ten years to activism and work on the intersection of human rights and contemporary art. Valeriia has a degree in Philosophy and is now studying Fine Arts at LUCA School of Arts in Brussels.

Vira Protskykh is an activist and manager from Mariupol. She has devoted the last five years to the development of local grassroots initiatives in Mariupol – the platform TU and the art cluster OS. Vira works on the intersection of human rights and art. Due to the russian invasion of Ukraine and the genocide of Ukrainian people committed by the russian federation she lives in Riga, where she is working with the Ukrainian community in Latvia.

Hanna Tsyba is an independent journalist and curator for cultural projects. MA in Cultural Studies. Researcher of the culture of the Perestroika period (1986-1991). Leftist and feminist. Lives and works in Kyiv, Ukraine.

Note on accessibility: The event room is only accessible via stairs.