Holodomor Conference and Writing Competition

Leading experts will gather for a Holodomor conference in Toronto on September 27-28, 2013

Specialists from Canada, France, Italy, Ukraine and the United States will gather in Toronto September 27-28 to examine the impact of research to date on the Ukrainian Famine of 1932-33. Contextualizing the Holodomor-A Conference on the Eightieth Anniversary is organized by the Holodomor Research and Education Consortium (HREC) of the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS), University of Alberta. For details on the conference program and registration information visit the CIUS web site. www.cius.ca

National Holodomor Education Committee announces a writing competition. Students 14-19 years of age are eligible to enter the Holodomor Famine-Genocide Writing Competition 2013. Using historical facts of the 1932-33 Holodomor in Ukraine, students may choose to write in one of several categories. Prizes are sponsored by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress.

Deadline for submissions: October 21, 2013. For details visit www.faminegenocide.com.

International Holodomor Memorial Day – Saturday, November 23, 2013

National Holodomor Awareness Week – November 18-24, 2013

About the Logo

The logo selected for the 80th commemorative year, designed by Ukrainian Canadian artist Oleh Lesiuk, depicts five stalks of wheat delicately bound with a black ribbon. While serving as a reminder of the famine’s devastation, the wheat symbolizes the Ukrainian nation’s determination to live and prosper; the nation’s future.

“Five Ears of Grain” Law

On August 7, 1932, Joseph Stalin authored a law with a sentence of death or 10 years’ imprisonment for the misappropriation of collective farm property. This law led to mass arrests and executions. Even children caught picking handfuls of grain from fields were convicted.