Censorship, Surveillance, Resistance: Twentieth-Century Ukraine and Letter Writing
Letter writing often conjures notions of separation in space and time, and with reunion. What was it like to sustain and nourish personal relationships across borders and sociopolitical divides for Ukrainians under the constant scrutiny of the KGB? How did people manage to keep writing despite separation, exile, imprisonment, forced labour, wars, and migration?
Scholars of epistolary culture from Canada, Ukraine, and the United States will examine international letter writing, censorship and surveillance, epistolary conventions and legislation, anxieties and personhood under totalitarianism, and related topics during the international symposium “Censorship, Surveillance, Resistance: Twentieth-Century Ukraine and Letter Writing” on 15-16 May 2023, in the Senate Chamber at the University of Alberta.
The event is free and open to the public. Advance registration required.
This is an in-person event and will not be digitally streamed.
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Location details
Address: Senate Chamber, Arts Building and Convocation Hall, Edmonton, AB, Canada
Agenda
Session One
“Dangerous Liaisons: Letters from and to the Soviet “Famine-lands” as Reported in Canada’s Daily Press, 1932-1934” - Jars Balan
"Weaponizing Words: Censorship, Surveillance and Resistance in Mennonite Communities in Soviet Ukraine (1920s-1930s)" - Colin Neufeldt
Session Two
"“Easter Greetings from Germany”: Picture Postcards as Nazi Propaganda in the Correspondence of Ukrainian Ostarbeiters" - Alex Averbuch
“We Sent What We Could: Postal Communication between Ukraine and the Soviet Gulag in the Post-War Period.” - Emily D. Johnson.
Session Three
“Under the KGB’s watchful eye: A Photo that bound generations and continents” - Frank Sysyn.
"“In life, things can happen, so it’s better for one not to write letters and give their photos”: Peter Krawchuk files in the KGB Archives" - Nataliya Bezborodova
Session Four
“Waldsee, the fiction and reality of a Name: Final Correspondence from the Victims of the Holocaust” - Anindita Mukherjee.
Session Five
“To Improve the Quality of Document Processing”: Transition from Military Postal Control to Secret Postal Control (1946) and its Impact on Perlustration Practices" - Jelena Pogosjan
“From World War II to the Cold War: Transformations of Postal Censorship as a Mirror of Social Change” - Andriy Kohut
"It Takes Three to Tango: Epistolary Transatlantic Adventure in Love, Art, and Diasporic Longing" - Natalia Khanenko-Friesen
FAQs
The location of our Conference is:
Senate Chamber (#326, 3rd Floor)
Arts Building and Convocation Hall,
University of Alberta, T6G 2E6
Edmonton, AB
https://goo.gl/maps/pJCTxKirtVR78Hp68
Driving & Parking
Parking near to the Old Arts building is available in Lot 700, Lot N or Lot U.
Rates:
6:00 am to 5:30 pm: $4.50/hr to a maximum of $15.00
Evenings (5:30 pm to 6:00 am): $5.50 flat rate
Weekends: $5.50 flat rate
Parking is also available along Saskatchewan Drive NW in zones 5062, 5063, & 5064 (between 110 & 116 St NW).
Rates:
6:00 am to 6:00 pm: $ 2.00/hr
6:00 pm to 6:00 am: $1.00/hr to a maximum of $5.00
Payment is made via City of Edmonton on-street pay machines. Machines accept cash, Visa, Mastercard, Amex and prepaid credit cards.
Public Transit
It is easy accessible to take public transit to our campus.
The University LRT train station is conveniently located right on campus and operates from 5:30 am to 1am daily. Tickets are $3.50 or 10 for $27.75. Visit Edmonton ETS for more info.
Take the LRT to University Station. Follow signs for 89 Avenue South and exit via the University Transit Centre South Access. Many buses also stop at the University transit Centre.
It is an 4 minute walk from University Station to the Old Arts Building & Convocation Hall.
Around Campus
Find your way around campus using the University of Alberta's campus map, which includes descriptions of and directions to all of our buildings and facilities.
Getting Into Edmonton from the Airport
To travel from the Edmonton Airport to your hotel, there are two options:
Taxi ($62 flat-rate): Hire a taxi with Co-Op, Airport Taxi Service, or Uber.
This option takes approximately 35 minutes, depending upon traffic conditions.
Transit ($3.50): Take Edmonton Transit Route 747 to Century Park LRT station. Then take the LRT Capital Line five stops to University Station. Follow signs for 89 Avenue South and exit via the University Transit Centre South Access.
This option takes approximately 50 minutes. It is an additional 4 minute walk from University Station to the Old Arts Building & Convocation Hall.
Getting Around Edmonton
The University of Alberta is centrally located in the heart of Edmonton and within walking distance of Whyte Avenue, Old Strathcona, and Jasper Avenue. There are many accessible walking paths and bike trails along the River Valley. Check out the Discover YEG map of popular trails, bike routes, and attractions. Your time may be limited while in the city, but we absolutely encourage exploration if and when you can do so!
The University LRT train station is conveniently located right on campus and operates from 5:30 am to 1am daily. Tickets are $3.50 or 10 for $27.75. Visit Edmonton ETS for more info.
If you're feeling adventurous, try out an e-scooter or e-bike, which are found scattered around campus and the surrounding neighbourhood and are available to rent via mobile app.
Explore Edmonton
• Royal Alberta Museum: Western Canada's largest museum
• Art Gallery of Alberta: Contemporary and historical collections
• Muttart Conservatory: One of Canada's largest indoor botanical collections, noted for its unique glass pyramid greenhouses
• Alberta Council for the Ukrainian Arts: Ukrainian arts organization with a rotating gallery and gift shop
• Elk Island National Park: UNESCO bio reserve and home to the plains bison, located 35 km east of Edmonton
• River Valley Trails: A network of walking and cycling trails
Food & Drink (on-campus)
• HUB Mall: a number of food options; easily accessed from Humanities Centre via the 2nd floor breezeway
• Remedy Cafe: iconic Edmonton cafe chain, Indian and Pakistani dishes "with a twist," vegan and gluten-free options
*See full list of food-services on-campus
Food & Drink (off-campus)
• Rge Rd: rustic-chic, farm-to-table cuisine
• Woodwork: local, Canadian-inspired fare: popular pub near campus, local craft beers, classic pub-fare
• Bar Bricco: classic Italian
• The Marc: French fine dining
• Farrow: sandwiches, coffee, and baked goods
• Cafe Mosaics: vegan/vegetarian eats in a cozy setting
• Continental Treat Fine Bistro: Central European bistro, gluten-free
Should you have any questions about the conference, please contact Event Coordinator Stefka Lytwyn at [email protected]
For any urgent issues, please text or phone (780) 222-7206
Resources
Preview Document
Speakers
Alex Averbuch
Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Alberta
Alex Averbuch is a scholar, poet, and translator. Currently he is the Izaak Walton Killam Memorial postdoctoral fellow at the University of Alberta. He earned his PhD in Slavic and Jewish studies at the University of Toronto with a dissertation on the history of the genre of solicitory poetry in Ukrainian, Russian, and Hebrew. Averbuch’s research explores commodity culture; gender and critical race theory; epistolarity; photography; theatricality and performance; translation; and creative writing in foreign language pedagogy. He is the author of three books of poetry and an array of literary translations between Hebrew, Ukrainian, Russian, and English. His latest book Zhydivs’kyi korol' (The Jewish King) was a Shevchenko National Prize finalist.
Session Two | 10:15AM, May 15, 2023
“Propaganda, Censorship, Subversion: Visual Rhetoric in the Correspondence of Ukrainian Ostarbeiters.”
Andriy Kohut
Director of the Sectoral State Archive of the Security Service of Ukraine
Dr. Andriy Kohut is a Director of the Branch-Wise State Archive of the Ukrainian Security Service. The Archive stores the largest collection of declassified KGB files. He received his Ph.D. in History from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, and his M.A. in History from Ivan Franko Lviv National University. He had to suspend his 2021-2022 Fulbright Fellowship at Stanford University. His academic and professional interests cover various topics related to Soviet deportations, communist secret services history, memory politics, and cultural diplomacy.
Session Five I 10:00AM, May 16, 2023
“From World War II to the Cold War: Transformations of Postal Censorship as a Mirror of Social Change.”
Jars Balan
Director, Kule Ukrainian Canadian Studies Centre at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, University of Alberta
Jars Balan is the Director of the Kule Ukrainian Canadian Studies Centre at CIUS. A specialist in Ukrainian Canadian history and culture, he has spoken and published extensively on the Ukrainian experience in Canada, especially Ukrainian-language theatre and literature, religious life, and the contributions made by leading community activists. In recent years much of his research has been focused on the coverage devoted to Ukrainians and their organizational life in the mainstream Canadian press, including reporting on the impact of Stalin’s First Five-Year Plan and the genocidal famine of 1932-1933, as well as the participation of Ukrainians in Canada’s Armed Forces during the Second World War. He has been involved in CIUS almost since its inception in 1976, as an editor, conference organizer, translator and research associate, and as the driving force behind the Kalyna Country Ecomuseum project, launched in 1991 to mark the centenary of Ukrainian settlement in Canada.
Session One | 8:15AM, May 15, 2023
“From the Inside to the Outside World: Letters from the Soviet “Famine-lands” as reported in Canada’s Daily Press, 1932-1934.”
Nataliya Bezborodova
PhD. Candidate at the Department of Anthropology, University of Alberta
Nataliya Bezborodova is a PhD Candidate at the Department of Anthropology, University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. She currently works as a Tutor at the Department of Anthropology, University of Edinburgh, UK, and a Lecturer (online) at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, Ukraine. She also worked as a Lecturer at the Department of Anthropology and Teaching & Research Assistant at the Kule Folklore Centre and The Bohdan Medwidsky Ukrainian Folklore Archives, University of Alberta.
She is interested in interdisciplinary approaches including anthropology, ethnography, cultural and religious studies. Her doctoral project focuses on the meaning of space and place in migrations, multilayered identity, and the role of religion in the social and political turmoil on the example of “Flying Community,” a group that connects members from Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and Italy. In 2016, Nataliya got her MA degree focused on the social media representations of the Maidan protests in Ukraine.
Session Three | 1:00PM, May 15, 2023
"“In life, things can happen, so it’s better for one not to write letters and give their photos”: Peter Krawchuk files in the KGB Archives"
Emily Johnson
Brian and Sandra O’Brien Presidential Professor of Russian in the Department of Modern Languages, Literatures, & Linguistics at University of Oklahoma, and Co-director of OU’s Romanoff Center for Russian Studies
Emily D. Johnson is co-director of the Romanoff Center for Russian Studies and the Brian and Sandra O’Brien Presidential Professor of Russian at the University of Oklahoma. She is the author of How St. Petersburg Learned to Study Itself: The Russian Idea of Kraevedenie (Penn State University Press, 2006), the editor and translator of Arsenii Formakov, Gulag Letters (Yale University Press, 2017), and, along with Julie Buckler, co-editor of Rites of Place: Public Commemoration in Russia and Eastern Europe (Northwestern, 2013). Most recently, she co-edited the volume Rethinking the Gulag: Identities, Sources, Legacies (Indiana University Press, 2022) with Alan Barenberg.
Session Two | 1:00PM, May 15, 2023
“We Sent What We Could: Postal Communication between Ukraine and the Soviet Gulag in the Post-War Period."
Natalia Khanenko-Friesen
Professor, Faculty of Arts - Modern Languages and Cultural Studies Dept · Director, Faculty of Arts - Canadian Institute for Ukrainian Studies (CIUS)
Natalia Khanenko-Friesen is an oral historian and cultural anthropologist currently serving in the roles of the director of the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies and Huculak Chair in Ukrainian Culture and Ethnography, both in the Faculty of Arts, University of Alberta, Canada. Her research interests include oral history, vernacular culture, diasporic and ethnic identities, labor migration, and immigrant letter writing. She authored or (co)edited the following books monographs, "Ukrainian Otherlands: Diaspora, Homeland and Folk Imagination in the 20th Century (U of Wisconsin Press, 2015); "The other world, or ethnicity in action: Canadian Ukrainianness at the end of the 20th century" (Smoloskyp Press, 2011); "Orality and Literacy: Reflections Across Disciplines" (U of Toronto Press, 2011) and "Reclaiming the Personal: Oral History in Post-Socialist Europe" (U of Toronto Press, 2015). Dr. Khanenko-Friesen is the founding editor of Canada's scholarly journal Engaged Scholar Journal: Community-Engaged Research, Teaching and Learning. Her current book project has the working title “Decollectivized: The Last Generation of Soviet Farmers Speak Out."
Session Five | 10:00, May 16, 2023
"It Takes Three to Tango: Epistolary Transatlantic Adventures in Love, Art, and Diasporic Longing."
Colin Neufeldt
Professor of History, Concordia University of Edmonton
Colin P. Neufeldt is a Professor of History at Concordia University of Edmonton. His most recent publications include: “Perspectives on the Mennonite Experience During the Holodomor (1932-33): Resources in North American Archives and Libraries”; “Divided Loyalties: The Political Radicalization of Wymyśle Niemieckie Mennonites in Interwar Poland (1918–39)”; and “Hitler, Mennonites, and the Holodomor: The Rise of Nazi Germany during the 1932-33 Famine in Ukraine and the Reinvention of Mennonites into Nazi Enemies of the USSR” (forthcoming). Colin also practices law in Edmonton.
Session One | 8:15AM, May 15, 2023
Presenting "Weaponizing Words: Censorship, Surveillance and Resistance in Mennonite Communities in Soviet Ukraine (1920s-1930s)"
Jelena Pogosjan
PhD. Professor, Faculty of Arts - Modern Languages and Cultural Studies
Jelena Pogosjan received her PhD (1997) from Tartu University (Estonia). She taught at Tartu University from 1990 to 2002, and from 2002 onward at the University of Alberta. Her major areas of expertise lie in 18th century Russian literature and official culture, Early Modern image studies, in particular the history of Russian icon painting. Between 2016 and 2022, Jelena served as the director of the Peter and Doris Kule Centre for Ukrainian and Canadian Folklore. Since 2016, Jelena has developed interests in the area of immigration and community studies, in particular, immigrant letter-writing and photography.
Session Five | 10:00AM, May 16, 2023
"“To Improve the Quality of Document Processing”: Transition from Military Postal Control to Secret Postal Control (1946) and its Impact on Letter-writing Practices."
Frank Sysyn
Director of the Peter Jacyk Centre for Ukrainian Historical Research at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, University of Alberta
Frank E. Sysyn is director of the Peter Jacyk Centre for Ukrainian Historical Research at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, professor in the Department of History and Classics at the University of Alberta, and editor in chief of the Hrushevsky Translation Project. A specialist in Ukrainian and Polish history, he is the author of Between Poland and the Ukraine: The Dilemma of Adam Kysil, 1600-1653 (1985), Mykhailo Hrushevsky: Historian and National Awakener (2001), and studies on the Khmelnytsy Uprising, Ukrainian historiography, and early modern Ukrainian political culture. He is also coauthor, with Serhii Plokhy, of Religion and Nation in Modern Ukraine (2003). He is editor in chief of the publication of the collected works of Mykhailo Zubrytsky (1856-1919).
Session Three | 1:00PM, May 15, 2023
“Under the KGB’s watchful eye: A Photo that bound generations and continents.”
Anindita Mukherjee
PhD. candidate in English and Film Studies at the University of Alberta
Anindita Mukherjee is a PhD candidate in English and Film Studies at the University of Alberta. She has held research fellowships at Holocaust Research Institute, Royal Holloway, and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Her research focuses on literature and philosophy of catastrophes in the Twentieth Century. She is also a poet and writer, and her debut collection of poems Nothing and Variations have been featured in the top ten young Indian voices in 2022.
Session Four | 9:15AM, May 16, 2023
"Waldsee, the fiction and reality of a Name: Final Correspondence from the Victims of the Holocaust"
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