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To learn about our commenting policies and how our community-based moderation works, please read our Community Guidelines women experience more stigma regarding substance abuse than men Lutsk is a Ukrainian city of about 250,000 people there are 250 people in the Volhynia region (200 in the city of Lutsk and 50 in other cities) who use substitution maintenance therapy to help with their drug addiction Drug addicts face many stereotypes and prejudices in society She helps addicts fight for their rights and supports them in various ways Iryna is not afraid of telling her story about drugs She works as a paralegal and is the regional coordinator of the Ukrainian organisation VONA Volhynia is located in the country’s western border region where modern drugs first started to appear in the small city of Novovolynsk Iryna was born in Lutsk and she started to take drugs in university the first therapy programme appeared in Lutsk We were the first people willing to join the programme” Iryna’s family spent two years recovering from the effects of years of drug use She had more free time and she started looking for a job Iryna saw a lot of intolerance towards people who use drugs in society She subsequently decided to fight for the rights of other people who deal with addiction Iryna has worked for several organisations and helped people access substitution-maintenance therapy Iryna has been using substitution maintenance therapy for over 12 years Her story can be understood by a lot of people who have experienced similar issues regarding prejudice there are three centres for substitution-maintenance therapy in the Volhynia region street drugs are more prevalent here than in other regions Drug distribution in the region is centred on the city of Novovolynsk a substitution-maintenance therapy centre has not yet been opened in the city they have to go to the neighbouring city of Volodymyr-Volynsk people may need to travel to another city every day for a dose of methadone or buprenorphine Ukrainian legislation demands that patients visit a therapy centre every day for the first three months of their treatment If the person is getting better and follows all of the doctor’s instructions “The centre was not opened in Novovolynsk for a long time because the hospital’s chief doctor was against it. People listened to him there. In the city there are many other narcotics besides opioids There is both street methadone and subutex (an analogue of methadone) In an interview claimed that several dozen new drug-related compounds appear on the streets every year the street distribution of subutex may have proven beneficial to someone in the city the authorities did not open a substitution therapy centre Subutex is used in many countries in substitution therapy many people addicted to drugs have to buy subutex the cost of one tablet of subutex is 60 Ukrainian hryvnia whilst in Ukraine it is sold for 500-600 hryvnia officials spoke again about the opening of the centre which also helps to protect the rights of drug addicts But this will not solve the problem of new drugs used by young people but psychotropic substances (amphetamine for example) and there is no protocol regarding treatment for these drugs in Ukraine who eventually end up at a police station to be fingerprinted and photographed Even when Iryna and other experts organise training sessions for the police to protect the rights of this vulnerable group they have to deal with the fact that many police officers do not treat drug addicts like human beings the police can force addicts to cooperate with them or blackmail them if they refuse It is awful for drug addicts to go to the police station We encourage drug addicts to not be afraid to defend their rights We can help write a complaint to the police or hospital” The organisations VONA and VOLNA work with the human rights ombudsman and the AIDS centre Many patients feel discrimination from wider society changing this situation is one of their most important tasks various organisations can often get in the way of their goals Iryna has noted that her work has been funded by the UN Global Fund This places a great strain on patients and employees at the centres She explains that “They set us a condition that we work for 20 per cent of the necessary pay it is difficult to help everyone who needs it And people with drug addiction suffer as a result of it” drug addicts must receive psychological help in order to return to a normal life there are very few psychologists who are actively working with drug addicts This figure is simply not representative because many women are afraid of going on SMT and continue to use street drugs there is the problem of anonymity within the programme but this does not mean that your data could not be discovered by someone who could reveal that you are a drug addict” She adds that “Ukrainian law also does not protect women There is an article in the Family Code that says that drug and alcohol addicts can be deprived of parental rights There are double standards for drug-addicted men and women but it is more likely to be tolerated by society the man will hide the fact that his wife uses drugs he will give her drugs and do everything to makes sure that no one knows” Iryna communicates with women and supports them She described the situation of one woman she has helped: “One woman works as a clerk and is afraid of going to a SMT centre because they may find out at work and fire her The woman constantly has to look for street drugs so that no one finds out that she is a drug addict” especially when she started to work with politicians and the police You see how medical workers look at us when you talk to them I have been living openly for a long time and talking about my problem for me going to the office and introducing myself to employees was a problem I think that self-stigma is stronger than stigma” Religion has a great influence in the Volhynia region and that is why it is not so easy to carry out educational campaigns Sometimes the group has cooperated with Protestant churches Society does not understand that drug addiction is a disease that needs to be treated they only want to talk about faith and willpower Іryna says that there has been a shift since 2008 because they have organised various meetings with officials and police society is changing and becoming more empathetic This article is part of the Solidarity Academy 2021 – Tackling prejudice an international project supported by a grant from the International Visegrad Fund She has been a Ukrainian journalist for over 6 years Iryna wrote articles about gender equality women’s rights and rights of other groups She investigated the corruption of politicians who worked in the government and city councils Iryna has the experience covering many sensitive topics related to war displaced persons and other groups of people affected by war The consequences of Russia’s invasion are visible not only in Ukraine The Kremlin has set off or exploited a series of crises that face most European countries New thinking is needed in policies towards Russia in whatever form it will take after the war Ukraine’s suffering goes well beyond the front line With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine we now see our western values under siege whether we consciously recognise it or not The invasion by Russian forces of Ukraine from the north south and east – with the initial aim to take the capital Kyiv – has changed our region The situation with Russian threats towards Ukraine once again illustrates the high level of instability in our region Only a year ago we witnessed the second Nagorno-Karabakh war between Armenia and Azerbaijan It took at least 5,000 lives and significantly shifted the geopolitics in the South Caucuses This special issue aims to honour the plight of Belarusians whose democratic choice made in August 2020 was shamelessly snubbed by Alyaksandr Lukashenka a lot of work still remains for this country And this is why Ukraine’s story is incomplete 30 years after the fall of the Soviet Union Our societies are more polarised than ever before which makes them more susceptible to disinformation The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed limitations and weaknesses in nearly all countries around the world volatility and the relationship between Russia and the West The Black Sea region is quickly becoming a geopolitical battleground which is gaining the interest of major powers regional players and smaller countries – and the stakes are only getting higher This issue is dedicated to the 10 year anniversary of the European Union’s Eastern Partnership as well as the 30 years since the 1989 revolutions in Central Europe The consequences of the emerging multipolar world This issue takes a special look at the role and responsibility of the public intellectual in Central and Eastern Europe today In the eastern parts of the European continent 1918 is remembered not only as the end of the First World War but also saw the emergence of newly-independent states and the rise of geopolitical struggles which are felt until this day that Belarus remains isolated from the West and very static in its transformation The Summer 2018 issue of New Eastern Europe tackles the complexity of para-states in the post-Soviet space University of Chicago College student Eyshe Beirich has received a 2022 Beinecke Scholarship a prestigious honor which will help him further his study of Yiddish language A third-year in the College majoring in Germanic Studies and Jewish Studies in Yiddish Studies—extending an academic path that began two years ago as a journey of familial discovery.  “Like many people my age who come to Yiddish it began as a way to try and connect to a family language and as a way of identifying where I came from—it developed into my biggest passion and is now the locus that my life revolves around,” said Beirich Yiddish has become my most central companion the Beinecke Scholarship enables students of exceptional scholarly promise to pursue graduate study in the arts The scholarship will provide him with $34,000 most of which will be awarded during his graduate studies From approximately 135 universities who are invited to submit a nomination It is the third year in a row that a student nominated by the University of Chicago has won the award.  Beirich decided to start teaching himself Yiddish as a first-year student in March 2020 right as the COVID-19 pandemic began to alter everyday life Yiddish had previously been spoken in his family three generations ago he was taking “Yiddish for Beginners,” taught by Jessica Kirzane assistant instructional professor in Yiddish in the Department of Germanic Studies As Beirich’s first formal Yiddish instructor Kirzane became his academic mentor and the person he considers the most instrumental in supporting his studies and interests at UChicago and inspiring scholar and mentor who holds the Yiddish program on her shoulders,” he said “She has an encyclopedic knowledge of her subject and was always willing to take the time to share her knowledge and passion for Yiddish with me Kirzane said that Beirich approaches his study of Yiddish language literature and culture with urgent questions and a thirst to learn.  “It has been an extraordinary privilege to work with Eyshe and learn from him and to see him grow in his ability not only to speak and write in Yiddish but to use Yiddish as a medium of inquiry,” Kirzane said “All of the work he has produced in his coursework with me has been innovative and already of a caliber I would expect at the graduate level.” Beirich’s research focuses on a contentious issue in Yiddish literary and cultural history the history of Orientalism and Orientalist discourses in Yiddish literature produced in Palestine The concentration within his major, Comparative Germanics was brand new as of 2019 when he enrolled in the College and allows students to combine the study of German with another language taught in the department (in his case as well as both languages’ respective works of literature Beirich will become the first person to graduate from the College with this concentration When Beirich first began reading Yiddish literature he engaged with topics ranging from poetry culture and colonialism to Marxism and Jewish religious texts he also found what he describes as racist and chauvinistic content This discovery led him to focus his studies on analyzing how racialization functions within Yiddish literature He said he hopes to take the conclusions and ideas that arise from his graduate-level research and apply them to some of the most pressing issues that involve the Yiddish world and beyond Currently, he pursues these subjects as an editorial intern at In geveb: a Journal of Yiddish Studies and as a research assistant for Devin Naar a professor at the University of Washington I was confronted with the question of how Yiddish literature was involved in histories of racism against Jews to engage with these works more critically?” Beirich said “I became fascinated with trying to better understand what might happen if criticism and research into these works proved productive for understanding historical trends of racialization and colonialism instead of treating their problematic content as something to hide or excuse.” The award will provide him with significant financial support to pursue his dreams of becoming a professor or a writer his lifelong goal is to teach others Yiddish and work towards building a global Yiddish community.  “I could not be more humbled and grateful and appreciative and friends who believed in me and supported my ideas,” he said “Beinecke is an award that gives me an exhilarating amount of confidence and hope for my future—things I really need to continue to grow and learn.” The College Center for Research and Fellowships (CCRF) facilitates the annual Beinecke Scholarship nomination process Beirich received extensive support from the CCRF Fellowships team which supports undergraduates and recent College alumni through highly competitive national and international fellowships.  —A version of this story is published on the University of Chicago College website Get more with UChicago News delivered to your inbox news@uchicago.edu You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Lviv Polytechnic National University hosted the Summer School «Cultural Heritage of the Borderlands for Sustainable Development of Local Communities» The event is one of the implementation stages of the international project of the Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Programme module «Sharing Cultural Heritage at Ukrainian-Polish Borderlands: European Dimension and Local Practices» which is being implemented by the Department of History Museum Studies and Cultural Heritage of Lviv Polytechnic during 2022–2025 including those from Lviv Polytechnic National University Vasyl Stefanyk Lviv National Scientific Library Department of Culture and Tourism of the Executive Bodies of Drohobych City Council Omelian Dvernytskyi Volodymyr-Volynskyi Historical Museum Ivan Krypiakevych Institute of Ukrainian Studies of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine the participants had the opportunity to listen to different speakers workshops and interactive excursions on the key topics of the Summer School: Deputy Director of the Lviv Historical Museum: «I am very pleased to have participated in the Summer School The topic is relevant and requires further professional study and promotion among school and student audiences Well-selected lecturers and thoughtful presentations The flash and feedback techniques were successfully used which makes it possible to understand the perception or rejection of the material I believe that we should continue to hold such events and at the same time disseminate information about them more actively and purposefully I will be happy to participate in the next schools expands my circle of scientific interests and professional contacts» history teacher at Olena Stepaniv Ukrainian Gymnasium in Lviv: «I am immensely grateful to the organizers and all the Polytechnic staff who participated for such a great opportunity to be among like-minded people to enjoy lectures and discussions and to gain tremendous experience professional development and a lot of positive emotions Please continue to organize such events to discuss topical issues E-mail: coffice@lpnu.ua President Volodymyr Zelensky was the first to talk about the return of AZOV fighters: “We are returning home from Turkey and bringing home our heroes — the return of the commanders of “Azov” Denis Shlega will finally be with their families,” the President wrote Together with the President on board the plane the Minister of Internal Affairs Igor Klymenko congratulated the return of our Heroes Ukraine has returned to their homeland five Azovstal defenders who were in Turkey after their release from Russian captivity According to the results of negotiations with the Turkish side Ukraine returned to their homeland the military — defenders of “Azovstal”: the commander of a separate detachment of the special purpose unit of the National Guard “Azov” Hero of Ukraine Denis Prokopenko acting commander of the 36th Separate Brigade Marine Brigade Sergey Volynsky Senior Officer “Azov” Oleg Khomenko and Commander of the 12th Brigade of the National Guard Denis Shlegu The military had been in Turkey after their release from Russian captivity in September 2022 President Vladimir Zelensky met with defenders at Istanbul airport I am very happy about your return to your homeland Glory to Ukraine!” — said the head of state Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with the defenders of “Azovstal” and thanked them for their courage and steadfastness We will say our word again: the dismissed commanders of the defenders of “Azovstal” will return to the front - said the commander of “Azov” Denis Prokopenko “I am deeply convinced that the army is teamwork and from today we will continue the fight with you The most important thing is that the Ukrainian army has seized the strategic initiative on the front line and every day we are moving forward liberating the temporarily occupied territories And we will do everything possible and impossible to speed up this process and for the war to reach its logical conclusion,” the Azov commander stressed The special purpose brigade “Azov” returned to the front - the acting director of the Department of Application Planning of the Main Directorate of the National Guard of Ukraine “The legendary special purpose brigade “Azov” recovered and began performing combat tasks in the area of the Serebryansky forestry,” the Military Media Center quotes him as saying “Azov” fighters “hold the occupied borders and inflict losses in manpower and equipment to the enemy.” The Azov Regiment held the defense of Mariupol at the Azovstal plant for almost three months in the spring of 2022 the defenders of “Azovstal” by order of the command left the territory of the plant More than two thousand Ukrainian servicemen who defended the city were captured by the Russian military a significant part of them served in the Azov regiment several hundred Azov fighters have been returned to Ukraine as part of a prisoner exchange We use cookies to provide you with better navigation on our website you automatically agree to the use of these technologies.