Anne Applebaum
The derussification of Odessa, a Russian speaking city until a few months ago, picks up pace. Last night they removed the statue of Catherine the Great. In a generation no one will speak Russian there anymore. This is what the invasion has achieved.
https://twitter.com/mattia_n/status/1608397619004309505?t=nQPB2ytR13Zt94rEhqYhgQ&s=09
Mattia Nelles on Twitter

“Yesterday night, the statue of Catherine the Great was removed from Odesa. Unthinkable just few years ago, the Russian aggression now speeds up the de-Russification of the city and its landmarks.”

Twitter
Dec 29, 2022 at 2:47pmWeb
Show threadQuackerDec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum I had always wanted to visit Prague since Prague Spring occurred in my formative years. When I realized that dream in 2013, I found most young people spoke English. I learned after the Velvet Revolution, President Havel had the schools stop teaching Russian and start teaching English. You could tell someone’s age by how good their English and how poor their Russian was. Incidentally, Havel was a playwright and poet. Ukraine will win the war and transform itself.
Show threadShirley EugestDec 29, 2022

@anneapplebaum
I hope this news photograph from 1960 comes through. Found on Shorpy, it is also available on Getty.
https://www.shorpy.com/node/26893?size=_original#caption

September 1960. New York. "Demonstration to free Ukraine from Soviet rule outside the United Nations building during Nikita Khrushchev's visit for opening session of the Fifteenth General Assembly." 35mm acetate negative by Fred Stein.

Shorpy Historical Picture Archive :: Glory to Ukraine: 1960 high-resolution photo

Vintage photographs available as fine-art prints or digital stock images

Show threadShirley EugestDec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum
http://ukrweekly.com/archive/pdf1/1960/The_Ukrainian_Weekly_1960-37.pdf
Show threadRisto HaatajaDec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum already I hear Ukrainian every day, much more than even last year at this time. Most friends I have switched to Ukrainian as much as they can - for some it means refreshing their dormant memory of the language. Most businesses, including restaurants, speak only Ukrainian. You can speak Russian without problems, but the answer is always in Ukrainian.
Show threadRisto HaatajaDec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum As another interesting change, our Government app called Dia - which you use to interact with government relating to identification, driving licenses, car registration etc., gave everyone an opportunity to vote when Christmas should be celebrated, on the 25th December or 7th January (Orthodox Christmas). The image shows the results; 1,5 million have voted, 60% for Dec 25th, 25% for Jan 7th, 12% for both and the remainder do not celebrate Christmas.
Show threadamyseekstruthDec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum good
Show threadKenDec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum A bit unrelated but Turkey has decided to change its name. It will now be called Türkiye. This because the turkey of a leader does not want to be associated with a name that indicates failure. Erdogan should have named it ‘scumville’ imao. You can google the correct pronunciation of this but it is something like ‘turk-e-eahh’. https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/world-news/turkey-rebranding-country-changed-name-24135758
Turkey wants to be known as Türkiye as country looks to rebrand

The country's leadership wants to rid it of associations with the bird, often defined as 'something that fails badly' or a 'stupid or silly person'

ChronicleLive
Show threadJasmine 🏳️‍⚧️Dec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum @KenAshe Do you realize this is racist to mock the Turkish language or is the racism a feature for you?
Show threadKenDec 29, 2022
@womanontherun @anneapplebaum The article says that he wanted to change the name in order to not have the name associated with a "turkey" as in failure. It is that, that he wants to avoid association with failure, which prompted my post. If the article said only that it was to promote the property pronunciation of the language, I would agree it would be racist. But the emphasis was on the meaning of failure associated with 'turkey' in English that makes it free game to mock. Make sense?
Show threadJasmine 🏳️‍⚧️Dec 29, 2022
@KenAshe @anneapplebaum 🙄 Still racist loser
Show threadGilDec 29, 2022
@KenAshe @anneapplebaum They just decided their country won't be anymore stuffed, cut and eaten at Xmas.
Show threadbearpondboyDec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum Welp.
Show threadDaniel Hoffmann 🌄Dec 29, 2022
@anneapplebaum Before 1933, German was one of the top languages in science, and scientists came to Germany from the US and many other countries to study in German. The Nazis "achieved" a reversal of this. I guess there are similar mechanisms at work.
Show threadMeggan JordanDec 30, 2022
@anneapplebaum tankies scrambling
Show threadRishikeshDec 30, 2022

@anneapplebaum

It is reminiscent of the fate of German language after the second world war. The German speakers of eastern Europe were either deported or people stopped speaking German. Even in USA and Canada German language education practically vanished from schools.

Show threadMiles ShapiroDec 30, 2022
@anneapplebaum When will the derussification of Odessa, TX and the rest of red state America begin? That’s my question; because every talking point on FOX mirrors RU state tv without fail.