“A Genocide begins with the killing of one man; not for what he has done, but because of who he is.” – Koffi Annan, U.N Secretary-General 2001
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed not only how people interact with each other, but also how Holodomor awareness is brought to the public. Although the HMC’s travels across Canada are currently on hold, we continue to spread awareness by strengthening our social media presence on Twitter and Facebook, and turning to online virtual learning for students.
As classrooms around the globe are going virtual so have we, by creating a pre-recorded online high school module, “Introduction to the Holodomor: A Virtual Lesson for Schools”.
This lesson is a primer on the concept of genocide, the history of the Holodomor, and offers a call-to-action for students to fight against hate and prejudice and to advocate for social justice in their communities. Guided by a narrator, students explore primary and secondary sources, do a short quiz, and write a reflection piece exploring the steps they can take towards being active citizens, which their teacher receives. We are reaching out to high school principals and teachers about this lesson, and have over 129 schools now signed up for the lesson.
We continue to have a strong presence on Facebook with over 2,450 followers averaging a 1.12% engagement rate, well above the average for non-profit organizations. On Twitter (@HolodomorTour) we have over 800 followers, with a rate of 1.8%, and an “impressions” rate of 1.8 million views. We develop organized posts about the Holodomor, other genocides and international human rights abuses. Being inclusive of other atrocities not only widens the reach of the Holodomor genocide, but also lends support to others who have also suffered, and are currently experiencing, crimes against humanity.
2021 continues to be a year that has many global events taking the news forefront and we are extremely pleased with our direct school based and social media Holodomor awareness campaigns. The Canada-Ukraine Foundation and the Holodomor National Awareness Tour gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Ontario Trillium Foundation as well as that of the Federal Government and our many private sponsors, so that we can continue to carry this project further into the future.
About the Ontario Trillium Foundation
The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) is an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s largest granting foundations. With a budget of over $136 million, OTF awards grants to some 1,000 projects every year to build healthy and vibrant Ontario communities.