Ukrainians in Canada

The Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS) has reached a milestone—it has turned forty. Founded at the University of Alberta in 1976, CIUS has expanded over the decades to comprise programs in Canada and, after 1991, in Ukraine. The interdisciplinary institute is made up of several centres and programs supported by endowments created by donors from the community, Government of Alberta grants, and the University of Alberta’s budget. They include the Peter Jacyk Centre for Ukrainian Historical Research, the Ukrainian Language Education Centre, the Kule Ukrainian Canadian Studies Centre, the Kowalsky Program for the...

Former prime minister Stephen Harper has been awarded one of Ukraine’s highest honours. Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko granted the Order of Liberty to Harper to mark the 25th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence this week. Past recipients of the award, which recognizes contributions towards strengthening Ukraine’s sovereignty, include top diplomats of NATO and the European Commission. Harper led the charge to have Russia booted out of the G8 following that country’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. As prime minister, he also pledged millions in military trainers and other forms of aid to Ukraine, which was also one of the...

Ukraine marks 25 years since the Declaration of Independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The day is not only celebrated in Kyiv with a patriotic and large-scale military parade, but also observed and celebrated across the world wherever Ukrainians reside. This year, according to the EuroMaidan Press, there were 105 celebrations worldwide dedicated to Ukraine's 25th anniversary of Independence. In Toronto, the League of Ukrainian Canadians (LUC) in co-operation with the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), Toronto Branch, organized an official Ukrainian flag-raising event in front of the Ontario Legislative Building at Queen’s Park. The celebration was attended by over two hundred community members who waved their blue and yellow flags, shared their recollections of the beginnings of the sovereign state of Ukraine, and greeted each other with the patriotic “Glory to Ukraine!”

The Toronto Branch of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC-Toronto) welcomed over 10,000 people to the 25th annual Ukrainian Independence Day celebration on Saturday, August 20 at Centennial Park in Toronto. A full day of greetings, festivities, and entertainment was enjoyed by all. This Independence Day celebration marked not only a quarter century of Ukraine’s independent statehood, but also commemorated three additional historical milestones of the Ukrainian Canadian community: The 125th Anniversary of Ukrainian Settlement in Canada, the 160th Anniversary of the birth of Ivan Franko, and the 75 Year Anniversary of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress which represents the Ukrainian Canadian community across Canada. This event was attended not only by...

The Holodomor Research and Education Consortium (HREC) has announced an ambitious fall program to promote understanding and awareness of the Holodomor. The first event features demographer Oleh Wolowyna, who will speak at University of Toronto on September 15 about the results of recent research conducted by a team of demographers from Ukraine. His talk is entitled, "What We Now Know about the Holodomor: New Research Results." HREC has organized the conference “Empire, Colonialism, and Famine in Comparative Perspective” to be held October 28, at Knox College, University of Toronto. The conference will bring together presenters on the...

Strikingly beautiful, Sofiya Chorniy is statuesque and lithe with long, honeyed hair and brown eyes. Born in L’viv, Ukraine on September 7, 1993, she immigrated to Canada at the tender age of four, along with her older brother, Andrew and their parents, Oleh and Ulyana Chorniy. Sofiya’s love for her homeland began to flourish in her formative years. As a child, she spent many summers in L’viv and she reminisces about the characteristic charm of the city, with its astounding scenery and abundance of chestnut trees. Walking along the cobblestone streets, she would come across bazaars where traditional embroidered shirts and jewellery, such as intricately designed...

The Holodomor Mobile Classroom (HMC) is officially on the road, spreading awareness about the man-made Famine of 1932-33 in which millions of Ukrainians were starved to death. The HMC visited six Ontario high schools and three Ukrainian Saturday schools in March and April, reaching more than 650 students with up to four lessons per day being given in the HMC. Mark Melnyk, the Department Head of History for the York Region District School Board, called it “one of the coolest, most immersive learning experiences we have been fortunate to share with our students,” adding that “its use of state-of-the-art technology is captivating for a generation of students that are often hard to impress.”...

"I sometimes don't sleep at night thinking about injustice," Canadian education curriculum reformer and author Valentina Kuryliw explains. "I'm the kind of person who's not afraid to speak out. In the Canadian setting, I deal with controversial topics and I don't shy away from them. Every time a new curriculum comes out, the new textbooks are written-and the textbooks don't include information about the Holodomor unless it's also included in the educational curriculum. So I made a point that I wasn't going to buy their books unless it was...

The Ukrainian Canadian community is celebrating the 125th Anniversary of Ukrainian immigration to Canada. There are over 1.3 million Canadians of Ukrainian descent, and for 125 years Ukrainians have been contributing to the essential fabric of Canadian life and culture. In 1891 the first Ukrainians came to Canada seeking a better life for their families. Through five large waves of immigration, Ukrainians have settled in Canada - a land of refuge and freedom. The Ukrainian story in Canada is a testament to the opportunities and possibilities that our great country represents. Ukrainians have remembered their traditions, language and culture while giving back to the land where they have made their homes. They have been instrumental in the building of a diverse...

At a Queen’s Park ceremony commemorating the victims of the genocidal famine known as the Holodomor, Ontario Minister of Education Liz Sandals and MPP Yvan Baker participated in the ribbon cutting of the Holodomor Mobile Classroom. The 40-foot RV is the centerpiece of the Holodomor National Awareness Tour. The Holodomor Mobile Classroom will tour the province and the country teaching about the manmade famine of 1932-1933 that starved to death millions of Ukrainians...