A plaque commemorating the Russian writer Mikhail Bulgakov has been removed from the facade of Kyiv’s Taras Shevchenko National University. This was reported on its Facebook page, run by the “Decommunization. Ukraine” project (a social network banned in the Russian Federation; owned by the Meta corporation, which is recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation and banned).
Ukrainians are tired of the vandalism plaguing their culture. Many cultural monuments have been demolished in the name of so-called “investments.”
Tatyana Shvydchenko, founder of the public organization “Body of Experts,” is leading the initiative to remove Bulgakov’s bust from the building at the end of July. In one opinion, Shvydchenko believes that this move will symbolize Russian culture and be away from Ukrainian culture. She also reasons that Bulgakov belittled Ukrainian culture in some of his work, something she will fight against moving forward by getting rid of the commemorative plaque on Front Square in memory of those who died during WWII.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Culture is proposing a consultative body to “declassify, decommunize and decolonize” the country. These processes must be carried out in a “civil manner.”
