A personal account of courage and memory — one woman’s story that echoes the experience of an entire generation.
Olga speaks about her life in her home country of Belarus on the pre war borderlands of Poland and the Soviet Union, before, during and after WW2…..
Writer and researcher focusing on Belarusian history and the families affected by Soviet deportations. His aunt’s memoir, Danuta’s Story, is serialised on this blog.
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Belarus Society
Putin’s drive to realise ambitions of Russia’s global power is now risking the destruction of Russia’s own infrastructure.
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Belarus Society
In the Lenin Shipyards in Gdansk, 17,000 striking workers shook the authority of the Polish Communist state. Forty years later, Belarus rose.
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Belarus Society
When Lukashenko came to power in 1994 he called a referendum — and with it, the quiet sidelining of the Belarusian language began.
Thank you for writing this. My great-grandfather was from near Slutsk and the family never spoke about 1920. Reading this finally gave me context for the few things my grandmother hinted at.
Thank you, Siarhei. That silence was very common — people learned it was safer not to talk. If you ever want to share his story, I would be honoured to hear it.
I had never heard of the Slutsk Uprising before. Fascinating and very clearly explained. Is there a good English-language book you would recommend for further reading?
Very little exists in English, sadly. Per Anders Rudling’s ‘The Rise and Fall of Belarusian Nationalism’ is a good starting point.
Seconding that recommendation — it covers the 1918–1921 period in detail.
Жыве Беларусь! It is so important that these stories are told in English too, so the world understands this is not ‘just another part of Russia’.