Decolonization in Ukraine: Tetyana Filevska on 300-Year Journey Ahead

Decolonization does not happen in a few years; it has to last as long as colonization lasted.

This opinion was expressed by the creative director of the Ukrainian Institute, researcher of the Ukrainian avant-garde Tetyana Filevska and the work of Kazymyr Malevich in an interview on Intent.

According to her, while Ukraine's colonial dependence on Russia lasted for about 300 years, the real process of liberation will take more than one generation. And if we start counting the modern decolonization from 2022, we still have a very long way to go.

Filevska emphasized that decolonization is not just about removing a plaque with the name of a Russian figure or renaming a street. It's about stopping constantly defining ourselves through the colonizer. True freedom will begin when we see ourselves not as a shadow of Russia, but as a separate, integral civilization.

In her opinion, Ukraine should see itself not only in the dichotomy of "us and Russia," but in a broader context, from the ancient Greek colonies in the south to cultural interaction with Poland, Italy, and Austria-Hungary.

"The question is not whether Malevich is Ukrainian or Russian," says Filevska, "the question is whether we can finally talk about ourselves outside of this rift."

She emphasized that colonialism leaves behind not only external symbols, but also deep traumas, those that are passed down from generation to generation. And decolonization is not a one-time event, but a complex process that has no finish line. But it is necessary if we want to have a strong, free and independent Ukrainian identity.

Meanwhile, Odesa region continues to rank fifth in Ukraine in terms of the number of streets to be renamed in the process of decommunization and decolonization of the country by region. In Odesa region, 228 streets need to be renamed. For comparison, there are 111 such streets in Mykolaiv region and 94 in Kherson region. However, in June 2024, there were 581 such streets in Odesa region, while in Mykolaiv and Kherson regions there were 407 and 156 non-decolonized streets, respectively.

Ірина Глухова