Andrey Kurkov: Writing Under the Bombs in Ukraine

When Ukrainian novelist Andrey Kurkov spoke to France 24 last week about writing under bombardment in Kyiv, his reflections on resilience, language, and the role of the intellectual in wartime resonated far beyond Eastern Europe. For many in Chicago’s vibrant Ukrainian Village neighborhood along Division Street, his words weren’t just news—they were a mirror held up to their own lived experience of displacement, advocacy, and cultural preservation. Kurkov, whose war diaries have become essential chronicles of the invasion, emphasized how storytelling becomes an act of resistance when cities are under siege—a sentiment that echoes in the basements of Ukrainian churches on Chicago’s Near West Side and in the poetry readings hosted at the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art.

This connection between global conflict and local response isn’t new, but it has intensified since 2022. Chicago, home to one of the largest Ukrainian diaspora communities in the United States—estimated at over 50,000 people—has seen a surge in grassroots organizing, fundraising drives, and cultural programming aimed at supporting Ukraine. Institutions like the Ukrainian National Museum in Chicago’s West Town neighborhood have reported a 300% increase in visitors since the invasion began, with exhibits now featuring not just traditional embroidery and pysanky eggs, but as well fragments of shrapnel from besieged cities and letters from soldiers on the front lines. These artifacts serve as sobering reminders that the war is not abstract. It’s personal, immediate, and deeply woven into the fabric of everyday life for many residents.

Beyond remembrance, the crisis has sparked tangible second-order effects. Local businesses in Ukrainian Village have adapted: bakeries like Kyiv Cafe now host weekly “Solidarity Saturdays,” donating a portion of sales to medical supply chains operating in Lviv and Kharkiv. Meanwhile, academic circles at universities such as the University of Illinois Chicago have expanded course offerings on Eastern European security studies, with enrollment in Slavic languages up 40% over the past two years. Even the city’s public library system has responded—Chicago Public Library’s Harold Washington Library Center now maintains a dedicated Ukraine Resource Hub, offering multilingual guides on refugee assistance, mental health services, and legal pathways to temporary protected status.

What’s emerging is a model of translocal civic engagement, where global crises are met not with passive sympathy but with hyperlocal action rooted in cultural identity. This mirrors historical patterns—think of how Chicago’s Polish and Irish communities mobilized during periods of unrest in their homelands—but with a distinctly 21st-century twist: digital coordination, real-time communication with relatives abroad, and the use of social media to counter disinformation campaigns. Kurkov himself noted in his interview that the war is being fought not just on battlefields but in the information space, a reality that has prompted local media watchdogs like the Chicago Headline Club to partner with Ukrainian fact-checking organizations to monitor and debunk false narratives circulating online.

Given my background in analyzing how global events reshape urban communities, if this trend of diaspora-led humanitarian and cultural response impacts you in Chicago, here are the three types of local professionals you need to know:

• Cultural Heritage Coordinators: Look for individuals or teams with proven experience working with ethnic museums, folkloric societies, or immigrant cultural centers—especially those familiar with grant applications from the Illinois Arts Council Agency or the National Endowment for the Humanities. They should demonstrate fluency in both the logistical and emotional dimensions of preserving intangible heritage during crisis.
• Diaspora Liaison Specialists: These professionals bridge gaps between local communities and international aid efforts. Seek those with verified connections to NGOs operating in Ukraine, experience navigating U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) procedures for humanitarian parole, and a track record of organizing transparent donation drives—ideally affiliated with groups like Razom for Ukraine or the Ukrainian American Coordinating Council.
• Community Resilience Advisors: Focus on practitioners who specialize in trauma-informed care within immigrant populations, particularly those licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and experienced in adapting evidence-based therapies (like CBT or narrative exposure therapy) for cross-cultural contexts. Bonus points if they collaborate with faith-based institutions such as St. Nicholas Cathedral or operate through federally qualified health centers like Alivio Medical Center.

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