What is happening in Ukraine?

In the early hours of February 24, Russian President Vladmir Putin launched what he deemed as a “special military operation” against Ukraine, a country of nearly 45 million. Attacks came from the north, east, and south in an effort to seize the country, who only gained independence in 1991 after the Soviet Union collapsed. As Ukraine’s government has recently gown closer with it’s Western European neighbors, prior to the invasion, Putin demanded that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)—a military alliance between 28 European countries and 2 North American countries—not admit any new countries as members from among the former Soviet states, and asked that NATO forces pull back their forces from countries near the Russian border.

“Peace on our continent has been shattered,” said Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary-General, on February 25. “We now have war in Europe on a scale and of a type we thought belonged to history.” As of March 1, more than 350 civilians, including 14 children, have been killed as a result of Russian attacks, and over half a million people have fled the country.

It’s important to note that as millions of refugees retreat across the border, Black people have faced significant discrimination and mistreatment while trying to escape. Read further here.

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