VCWA is kickstarting a new series called “Timely Topics” in celebration of our 70th anniversary. These events feature experts with knowledge of current events happening around our globe.
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This event is FREE for members and will be held via ZOOM. Join us for a timely discussion with historian John-Paul Himka.
About the Event
Rising tensions in Ukraine are at an all-time high and leave many wondering about the effects it will have on future relations between Europe, the U.S., and Russia. News outlets have been reporting on the renewed geopolitical rivalry between western powers and Russia for the last several months. With the buildup of Russian military forces along the border with Ukraine late last year, many fear that a large-scale invasion is in the near future.
Meet the Speaker
John-Paul Himka
Professor Emeritus in the Department of History, Classics, and Religion at the University of Alberta
John-Paul Himka is former professor in the Department of History and Classics at the University of Alberta, Canada. He received a Ph.D. in history and a B.A. with high honors in Byzantine-Slavonic studies at the University of Michigan. For his Pinchas and Mark Wisen Fellowship, Professor Himka conducted research for his project, “Ukrainians and the Holocaust in History and Memory.”
Professor Himka has written extensively on Jews and the Holocaust in Ukraine. He is co-editor of Bringing the Dark Past to Light: The Reception of the Holocaust in Post-Communist Europe, as well as author of a number of books and numerous articles on Ukrainian history. Professor Himka is the recipient of several fellowships and awards and serves on several editorial boards, including the Canadian Slavonic Papers, Journal of Ukrainian Studies, and Ukraina Moderna. Learn More…
Meet the Moderator
Bill Harwood
Bill Harwood was born in Burlington, Vermont in 1946, and raised in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Harwood earned a doctorate in Polish and East European history at the University of Illinois in. He spent the academic year (1974-1975) conducting dissertation research at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland where he met John-Paul Himka. In May 1977, he trained with the former US Information Agency in Washington DC as a Foreign Service Information Officer doing Press and Cultural work in the U.S. embassies. He served in U.S. Information Service centers in Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Poland, Russia, and Somalia. Learn More…