One of the side effects of growing up mixed race and adopted is the (often in-your-face) realization that a lot of how we divide ourselves into “us” and “them” is a matter of choice.
Like so many of you, I’m watching the war in Ukraine and hoping the news will improve.
I don’t know any Ukrainians (or many Russians). They aren’t Americans or Canadians or African Americans or Swedish Americans or Italians or Germans or French or Irish or any of the other categories that I might reasonably be expected to claim as “my” people. But they are people.
And that’s what matters.
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Background & Links
- How do you pronounce Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine? (short answer: “Kyiv not Kiev. KEE-eve not KEE-yev.”)
- Russia’s war in Ukraine: complete guide in maps, video and pictures
- Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, explained
- Fact-checking disinformation posted about the war (background)
- Here’s how you can help the people of Ukraine
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“I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, Author and Veteran
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J.R. Johnson 
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