The Civilian Uniform: How We Fit Into the Russo-Ukrainian War
BY ZIPPORAH ORBISI, CAPM
QUALITY ENGINEER AND CONSULTANT
The Civilian Uniform:
How We Fit Into the Russo-Ukrainian War
Many people are wondering how a war thousands of miles away has crept into our conversations, routines and minds on a daily basis. Globalization is the short answer to this extremely complex question.
Americans, along with nearly 200 other sovereign nations, have banded together to form the United Nations, which has connected us since the end of World War II. This unified front was intended to protect the humanity of the world as best as possible from the scales of injustice that tipped in its favor prior to 1945. However, this formation in conjunction with technological advances has laid the groundwork for globalization, especially through capitalistic ventures, which has propelled globalization with great speed over the past six decades.
However, to understand our particular role in this war, as civilians, we must first understand its beginning.
In February of 2014 Ukraine went through the Revolution of Dignity (Maidan Protests). This revolution was a direct result of a decision regarding a free trade agreement with the EU. Ultimately the citizens of Ukraine ousted President Yanukovych, whom many considered corrupt and in league with Russian Oligarchs.
February 20, 2014 began the Russo-Ukranian war in the bordering cities of Crimea and Donbas. As a point of contention was one country's desire to relish in the spoils of globalization (Ukraine) and a World Power seeking to protect its population from some of the dangerous outputs of globalization (Russia).
Although globalization does have some unfortunate impacts—such as job displacement—it is a tool that has been accepted and practiced as a part of democracy. This means that, ideally, the people in each democracy would have a choice, and freewill to participate within the world's interconnected networks.
The Global North has been afforded many of the spoils that come with being a part of an international community. This is why as civilians we are subconsciously taking on the responsibility of providing aid to the people of Ukraine, in this war.
What we are hearing constantly on news networks is the toll this conflict is taking on Ukrainian families. Displaced families have been forced to seek refuge in bordering countries. Ukraine civilians are caught in the cross hairs of the conflict, and the strength of their resolve to remain an independent and democratic country is being tested. Yet the reason you and I are hearing about it so often is because through globalization we have become interwoven with the people of Ukraine, even if at best they feel like a distant cousin.
What anyone located in the Global North is feeling right now—with rising fuel prices, and alarm regarding the state of democracy—is our interdependence on Ukraine and Russia. If Ukraine succeeds we reap the benefits of balance, and return back to life as we knew it, as soon as possible. However, if Ukraine does not succeed, we will also reap the detrimental effects of inflation, potential stock market lulls, a fear of nuclear strikes, and a general sadness for a community of displaced persons yearning for a choice, who desire to exercise control of their lives and the ability to shape their own national identity.
"Ukraine Soldier" by U.S. Army Europe (marked with CC PDM 1.0).
So how do we as civilians living outside of the borders contribute? As with any test that we stand to face, we must first seek to arm ourselves with the knowledge needed to be triumphant.
Before we can fight, give aid, or donate we must first seek to truly understand the many facets of this subject:
History: Why are the Ukranians (civilians) so determined and strong-willed in this fight?
Politics: How our influence on our government impacts their next steps in this fight?
Finance: What are the options for displaced refugees? And do they have enough resources available to them? Are there any barriers to access?
For those of us situated in the Global North, the ability to answer those questions is at our fingertips, a little more than several clicks away. And that is where our fight lies first!
With the right knowledge we can know exactly how useful we can be with our next steps.
Whether you ultimately choose to attend a peace protest (virtual or in-person), donate to an effort you believe in, or simply by spreading the knowledge you have gained through conversations with friends and family.
We must dress for this war, armed with knowledge. And realize that many of us have been afforded the luxury of the freedom to learn, grow, and choose our path to societal contribution on a global scale.
World Education Day - 24 January
The 24th of January is World Education Day!
Today, 258 million children and youth still do not attend school; 617 million children and adolescents cannot read and do basic math; less than 40% of girls in sub-Saharan Africa complete lower secondary school and some 4 million children and youth refugees are out of school.
Education is critical and a human right for them too!
Because "Knowledge and the application of that knowledge makes a person less likely to be: taken advantage of, abused, lied to, overlooked, marginalized, enslaved."
In The News: Complaints Against Racial Discrimination
There are many people who would like to believe, that in the year 2021, we are living in a post-racial society, but the evidence continues to prove that racial discrimination remains deeply entrenched in different power systems globally.
That doesn’t mean that people are not taking action and fighting back!
Australia
Image by Simon Maisch
The state of Western Australia is re-drafting heritage laws meant to protect sacred Aboriginal sites so that developers may have the right to appeal, while denying appellant rights to Aboriginal Groups.
While the updated draft of the laws emphasize agreement between the indigenous Aboriginal groups and developers, it also maintains that the government retains the final decision in land disputes; and gives developers the opportunity to appeal that decision while withholding that same right from Aboriginal peoples.
A group of five Aboriginal Australians have filed a complaint with the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, stating that this is "a continuation of systemic and racial discrimination.” The Thomson Reuters Foundation reports that “while the UN has no authority over Australian state legislation, the group hopes getting the committee involved could help put pressure on the state government to make changes.”
Already, there has been the destruction of culturally significant, Aboriginal rock shelters by developer Rio Tinto.
The United States
Image from Twitter/@NoahWicks
In the state of Mississippi, six Black farmworkers have filed a lawsuit against Pitts Farms (one of the largest farms in Mississippi) for discriminating against them in favor of White foreign laborers from South Africa. Pitts Farms hired the White South African workers through an allegedly illegal use of the federal government’s H-2A visa program, “which allows U.S. farmers to hire foreign workers only when no U.S. workers are available to do the job.”
“With the unemployment rate in the Delta hovering at around 10 percent, it is unacceptable and unlawful that local farmers are looking to hire foreign labor before people in their own communities,” said Ty Pinkins of the Mississippi Center for Justice, which filed the lawsuit along with Southern Migrant Legal Services.
“Pitts Farms once employed a majority Black workforce drawn from Sunflower County, which is over 70% Black,” however, beginning in 2014, Pitts Farms “began recruiting and hiring only White farmworkers from South Africa, a country that is over 80% Black. In 2020, the lawsuit says, Pitts Farms laid off most of the plaintiffs while it recruited more White H-2A workers than ever, (Mississippi Center for Justice).”
In addition to discriminatory hiring practices, Pitts Farms also violated federal law by paying Black workers less than the White H-2A workers. Black workers received the minimum wage of $7.25 an hour with one dollar an hour more for weekend work, while the White workers from South Africa received $9.87 an hour in 2014, “and that rate increased most years until it reached $11.83 an hour in 2020” (CBS News).
To Conclude
It’s not just unfortunate that situations like the two mentioned here continue to happen, it’s unacceptable! This is what is meant when people say institutionalized or systemic racism, and yes, it is still happening in 2021.
Discriminatory practices are ingrained in much of the fabric that make up different societies, and are embedded in policy making and business operations.
These are not two outlier examples, they are proof of the continued and calculated acts meant to grant certain rights and privileges to one group while intentionally withholding those same rights and privileges from others.
There is power in collective efforts. It’s time for our communities to come together and hold institutions and systems accountable. Community-ownership, especially by impacted and marginalized people, of Development processes is a vital part of that accountability. When people are re-powered and understand that together they can affect positive change, we will begin to see equitable and inclusive social transformations that benefit those who have been traditionally underrepresented.