Local advocates and community members gathered Tuesday at San Jose City Hall for a candlelight vigil to object to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24th is further escalation in the Russo-Ukrainian conflict following the 2014 annexation of Crimea and conflicts in south-eastern Ukraine with Russian-backed separatist forces.
The event was organized by Orchard City Indivisible, an advocacy group focused on actions related to “stopping any agenda built on racism, authoritarianism, and corruption,” according to its website.
Representatives of the group said one of these local actions was organizing the Tuesday vigil, which called for community members to continue supporting those in Ukraine.
Lam Nguyen, communications director of the South Bay chapter, said Orchard City Indivisible started as a “progressive movement” after the election of former president Donald Trump.
“Ever since [Trump’s election], we’ve been an organization that’s focused on social equity, and local political actions as well,” he said “We’re a very action oriented group.”
Valeriia Karnaukhova, San Jose State international relations masters student, said during the event that she’s worried about the conflict in Ukraine.
“From this moment, my life wouldn’t be the same. I’m from the center of Ukraine,” she said. “We have no bombarding for now but I’m constantly worried about the safety of my friends and my family.”
Over 2 million refugees have fled Ukraine, mostly women and children, since Russia invaded, according to a Tuesday NPR article.
Karnaukhova said she feels Russia’s aggression in Ukraine is harming the lives of Ukrainian citizens.
“[Ukraine] has its own traditions, its own language and more than [thousands of] years of history, it can be destroyed,” Karnaukhova said. “People of Ukraine [and the] Ukrainian army, Ukrainian civilians [are] protecting and defending our homeland. I’m very proud of my people.”
Russia announced early Tuesday terms for Ukraine that must be met to end the conflict. Terms include accepting the annexation of Crimea, amending the constitution and ending any ambitions to join political blocs including the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union according to ABC News.
Celeste Walker, co-chair of Orchard City Indivisible, also spoke at the event against the “global rise of authoritarianism.”
Walker said she believes Russian President Vladimir Putin has the intent of “consolidating his power and weakening democracy around the world.”
“[Putin] intervened in the Syrian civil war during a democratic uprising,” she said. “He is a central force keeping authoritarian Alexander Lukashenko in power in Belarus, even as his own people rise up to demand freedom.”
In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, U.S. President Joe Biden announced several bans on Russian exports, including U.S. imports of Russian oil and gas, according to a Tuesday NPR article.
Russia is now the most sanctioned country in the world, according to a Tuesday Washington Post article.
Western leaders have imposed other Russian sanctions and frozen the assets of Russia’s central bank, restricting its access to over $630 billion of its reserves according to a Tuesday BBC article.
Biden said in a Tuesday statement that the decision to impose more sanctions was made in consultation with U.S. allies and has gained bipartisan support.
“Russian oil will no longer be accepted at U.S. ports, and the American people will deal another powerful blow to Putin’s war machine,” he said.
Nguyen said while he is content with Biden’s sanctions, he feels there are alternatives to address the conflict.
“I’m afraid that a lot of the actions taken will hurt the Russian people, and not necessarily the Russian leadership,” he said. “So what we are trying to do as [Orchard City Indivisible] is to push President Biden and others within the sphere of global leadership, to pressure from that perspective, and not necessarily just put perspective or put punishments on the people.”
Orchard City members also encouraged attendees at the event to donate to websites for humanitarian aid.
Karnaukhova said she plans to table at the SJSU campus on Thursday to bring awareness of the Ukraine conflict to fellow students.
She said she feels that the campus community is supportive of those anxious about the conflict in Ukraine.
“My faculty are supportive and professors are always worried about what’s happening there,” she said. “So you know, many questions and actually the International Students Office, wrote me an email as well and definitely told me, you will have the possibility right now to organize overtime to participate.”
