“The history book on the shelf
Is always repeating itself”

— Waterloo, ABBA, from Waterloo (1974)

On Thursday, I was thinking about just how quiet Chicago’s Ukrainian Community has been lately. While I may have missed an event or two, the last major demonstration against the Russian invasion coincided with the Ukrainian Independence Day celebration on August 14. I figured something would give within the next week or two because I associate the community’s annual Holodomor memorial with Thanksgiving week. Consequently, I was not surprised on Friday when I received an invitation for today’s 4:00 PM memorial service at Holy Name Cathedral.

I was puzzled, however. Why not a march or rally before the service? This is my fourth Holodomor, and there have always been anti-war rallies before the memorials. For those who don’t know, Holodomor was Joseph Stalin’s 1932 genocidal campaign against the Ukrainian People. Stalin’s chose famine as his instrument for wholesale murder. Somewhere between 3.5 and 5 million Ukrainians perished at his hands.

The Trump-Putin Peace Plan. As I was thinking about Holodomor, Donald J. Trump put forth his peace plan for Ukraine, demanding that the Ukrainians accept it by Thanksgiving Day or go without any further U.S. support. Over the last 11 months, Trump has run hot and cold on Ukraine’s valiant effort to remain a sovereign nation. Not surprisingly, Trump sees no value in Ukrainian independence from Vladimir Putin’s Russia. In Trump’s mind, Ukraine is that nasty little problem standing between him and the coveted Nobel Peace Prize that he will never receive. Unlike Trump, the Nobel Committee is self-aware.

Yesterday, Trump went to far as to claim that Ukraine has never thanked the United States for its assistance, which is another one of Trump’s many false claim. On at least 78 occasions, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has thanked the United States. If anyone is owed thanks, it is the Ukrainian people who have functioned as the tip of the spear defending Western interests. It is their blood and treasure that has been expended in stopping Vladimir Putin’s from reconstituting the Soviet Union of his youth.

Should Ukraine collapse as a sovereign nation, Putin will be emboldened in his terrirorial pursuits, with Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania likely targets. He might also venture into Finland and Poland. It is in the West’s interests to stop Putin, sending him back to Moscow with his head between his legs in shame.

Trump is not interested in peace, but rather in investment opportunities to enrich himself. By handing Putin Ukraine, Trump will then have the opportunity to build large Trump Hotels in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kiev, with an option on one in Helsinki once Putin takes the next step in his expansionist plans.

With his 28-point peace plan, Trump is simply allowing Putin to incorporate Ukrainian territory into Putin’s failed state. Under the plan announced Thursday, Trump is giving Putin everything that Putin seeks. Specifically, (i) Ukraine would be prohibited from joining NATO; (ii) the United States would recognize Crimea and the Luhansk and Donetsk regions as Russian territory even though some portions of these territories are still under Ukrainian control; (iii) Russia and Putin would not be held accountable for Russian war crimes, which have included attacks on civilians, the kidnapping of Ukrainian children, and the torture and murder of Ukrainian prisoners of war; (iv) Ukraine would reduce its military from 800,000 to 600,000 individuals, making it even a greater temptation; (v) Ukraine would hold elections that Putin would undoubtedly try to influence; (vi) Russia would be invited to rejoin the G8 and reintegrate into the world economy; (vii) half of the currently frozen Russian assets would be contributed to a joint U.S.-Russian investment fund, providing Trump with opportunities to personally profit; (viii) the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant would be reactivated, with 50% of the plant’s electrical output going to Russia; (ix) Ukraine would refrain from nuclear weapons development; (x) $100 billion in frozen Russian assets would be invested in rebuilding Ukraine, with the U.S. receiving 50% of the profits generated by such effort; and (xi) NATO would not station troops in Ukraine.

And what does Ukraine receive in return? A security guarantee from the United States. Notably, Trump is demanding that Ukraine pay compensation to the United States for this guarantee, with Putin promising to respect Ukraine’s sovereignty. Let’s face it, promises from Trump and Putin are not worth the paper they are written on.

The 1994 Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances offers the strongest evidence that Russia cannot be trusted. The Memorandum, which was signed by the Russia, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States, prohibits the non-Ukrainian signatories from using or even threatening the use of military force or economic coercion against Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan, except if the party is acting in self-defense, as defined in the United Nations Charter. Russia apparently didn’t view the Memorandum as binding in 2014 when Putin invaded and annexed Crimea. Nor did Russia’s obligations under the Memorandum prevent the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Trump’s plan is shameful. Since when does the United States seek to directly profit from a peace agreement? Following World War II, the United States plowed billions of dollars into the redevelopment of war savaged Europe. Keep in mind that the United States tried its best to avoid the conflict, but was dragged into it.

Then Secretary of State George C. Marshall knew that prosperity, democracy, and freedom were the best defenses against a third world war. Yes, the United States profited because a rising world economy created trade and investment opportunities, but those accrued indirectly to the private sector.

Sadly, Trump who is a selfish and avarice little man, is unable to view the world through the eyes of a statesman, making him incapable of separating profits from any aspect of U.S. foreign policy. Notably, $100 billion in Russian frozen assets is a mere pittance given the cost of rebuilding now facing Ukraine. The World Bank, the United Nations, and the European Commission have already determined that it will cost at least $525 billion to repair the damage to Ukraine resulting from Russia’s unprovoked attack and the subsequent hostilities.

No amount of money will bring back the Ukrainian soldiers and civilians who have been killed. Nor will money reduce the costs of treating those Ukrainians who have been wounded, including the cost of long-term care and maintenance for those who have been permanently disabled. In June 2025, the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies estimated that nearly 400,000 Ukrainian troops had been killed or wounded since the Russian invasion.

In addition to military casualties, Russia’s illegal military incursion has resulted in 49,431 civilian casualties from February 24, 2022 through July 31, 2025, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Those casualties include 14,000 deaths.

Just a Holodomor Memorial? Against that backdrop, I was surprised that Chicago’s Ukrainian Community was holding just a Holodomor memorial today. Since the beginning of the war, I have attended three Holodomor memorials, each one preceded by a rally. Why wasn’t the community planning a rally and march this year, particularly given Trump’s decision to stab Ukraine in the back by forcing President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept a “peace plan”—actually a plan for Ukraine’s dismemberment—drafted by Vladimir Putin who must surely possess kompromat on Trump? Is it the rumored pee-tape, evidence of treasonist acts on Trump’s part, or something unimaginable? Let’s not forget, Trump had his first known contacts with Russian officials in 1986, which were followed by trips to Russia in 1987 and 1996.

Two hours after I received the invitation to this year’s Holodomor memorial, Pavlo Bandriwsky, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America—Illinois Division’s Vice President of Government and Community Relations, I received a second text from Bandriwsky informing me that a 2:00 PM rally had been scheduled for today in the Wrigley Building Plaza.

Bandriwsky, Dr. Mariya Dmytriv-Kapeniak, the president of the Illinois Division, and Zoryana Smozhanyk must have been awfully busy during the last two days, pulling today’s rally together. In terms of visuals, the rally was astonishing, although more members of the Ukrainian Community should have turned out. It’s the Fourth Quarter, with two minutes left in the game. Ukraine is down by 6 points. Everybody has to give it their all, just like the Green Packers did in 1967 during the infamous Ice Bowl game played at Lambeau Field for the NFL Championship.

The Rally and the Memorial. Chicago Ukrainian Community rallies and marches are visual feasts. Today a number of community members held large photographs revealing the price that Ukrainians have paid in defending their homeland. Each photograph had a small white index card attached to it with a short explanation of what was depicted in often graphic and gory color. The scores of Ukrainian pre-teens and teenagers were also a nice addition. Three Ukrainian youth organizations served as honor guards and flag barriers. These groups included the Ukrainian American Youth Association, Plast (a Ukrainian scouting group), and ODUM (Ukrainian Democratic Youth Association).

But the teens were more than functionaries. Throughout the last three-plus years, I have come to appreciate the spirit and cohesiveness of Chicago’s Ukrainian Community. The adults are obviously relying on these youth groups to preserve the Ukrainian national identity and cultural heritage in Chicago by inculcating young Ukrainians in the ways of Ukraine. These organizations are the reason why so many Ukrainian young people, who like young people everywhere, speak the language of American pop culture, also speak Ukrainian.

As an outsider, I do get frustrated when most of the speeches at the rallies are in Ukrainian. Somewhat ironically, a Russian emigré in the crowd who vehemently opposes Putin translated one of the speeches for me. But it is important for young people to hear their native language if it and the associated culture are to survive.

At the rally, I noticed more than the usual number of Ukrainian wounded war vets among the demonstrators. Chicago’s Ukrainian Community has brought war veterans to Chicago for treatment throughout the war. I always face a quandary: Do I photograph the amputees? If I do, is it exploitative or informational.

Last year during the Democratic National Convention, when I was speaking with one of the Palestinian organizers, I asked if it was OK to photograph the Palestinians who stop in the late afternoon for Salat (ritual prayer). Before he answered, I said I do it because I think it humanizes the demonstrators. He responded, “Keep doing it. Yes.” While I have not discussed my decision with the Ukrainian organizers, I photograph the vets for a similar reason. They illustrate the terrible cost of war for those who have never journeyed to the frontlines. I assume that is one the reasons the vets keep showing up and speaking at Ukrainian rallies.

The march from the Wrigley Building Plaza to Holy Name Cathedral was a quick one. The demonstrators remained on the sidewalk rather than flooding the street. When we arrived at Holy Name Cathedral, I once again noted the planning that went into today’s rally and memorial. I was met by two pairs of teens who were standing on each side of the sanctuary’s entrance dressed in historic Ukrainian garb dating to the Thirties.

When I entered the sanctuary, I noticed more flower arrangements than in past years. As the officiants entered the sanctuary shortly before the memorial service began, I realized there were more of them present than in prior years. As I have noted before, I am a sucker for spectacle, so all the Orthodox Ukrainian officiants dressed in red and gold liturgical vestments put me in a highly excited state.

The service was relatively short, running just shy of an hour. Based on my recollection, more people spoke or led prayers this year than last. Among the speakers, was Dr. Dmytriv-Kapeniak who spoke in English, explaining Holodomor’s significance. I am glad she chose English.

When the memorial was over, people chatted in the lobby before heading home or wherever else they were going on Sunday night. Maybe to Fatso’s Last Stand in Ukrainian Village for a Chicago-style hot dog, or to Tryzub for a delicious dish from the motherland.

Overall, the rally, march and memorial service were a huge success. With Ukraine once again dominating the headlines, Chicago’s Ukrainian Community was smart to provide the local angle.

But despite my praise, I must note one major deficiency. Where were the Ukrainian K-Pop Singers and Dancers? As hardy Ukrainians, the K-Poppers should be able to perform in short skirts and sleeveless shirts despite cooler temperatures.

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]