Magocsi on Canada's Kontakt TV

Paul Robert Magocsi, Board Member of the Ukrainian Jewish Encounter, a Canadian charitable organization, speaks with Kontakt Ukrainian TV about Babyn Yar: History and Memory, a new publication that explores various aspects of this ravine, the site of one of the greatest atrocities committed against Jews during the Holocaust.

In the book, a group of internationally renowned scholars discuss the treatment of Babyn Yar in culture, music, and the arts from Stalinist times to our own. Beyond the detailed and harrowing accounts of what took place in Kyiv in late September 1941, the essays in this volume realize the importance of preserving Babyn Yar as a symbol of the Holocaust and other tragedies of the twentieth century.

Magocsi also discusses the difference between Babyn Yar and Auschwitz and the modes of killing each represents; the first is an example of the Holocaust by Bullets, which was widespread on the territory of modern-day Ukraine in World War II. He talks about week-long commemorative events dedicated to the 75th anniversary of Babyn Yar, sponsored by UJE in 2016 and the challenges of memorialization.

Co-edited by Professor Magocsi and Vladislav Hrynevych, a Leading Scholar at the Kuras Institute for Political and Ethnic Studies in Ukraine, the book's publication was supported by UJE and is distributed by the University of Toronto Press.

Kontakt TV is a weekly one-hour show that covers news, culture, politics, and other topics relevant to the Ukrainian community in North America and Ukraine. It is broadcast in English and Ukrainian.