Corrupt officials wearing embroidered shirts, military speaking Russian: Emma Antoniuk explains the main myths about the Ukrainian language

Journalist, blogger, and civic activist Emma Antoniuk decided to collect all the stereotypes and Russian narratives about the Ukrainian language in one video and explain why they don't work and how to respond to the excuses she hears. Moreover, she calls the reluctance to Ukrainize a manifestation of laziness.

"In 90 seconds, we analyze the most common excuses why people don't switch to Ukrainian," is how the journalist summarized the topic of her Instagram video. In the comments, her followers supported her and emphasized: "There is no objective reason to speak Russian if you are not Russian."

The language issue is out of date

"If all Ukrainians thought like this, we would be like Belarus, where less than a quarter of the country's population speaks their native language," emphasized Emma Antoniuk.

Corrupt officials also wear embroidered shirts. Language is not a sign of patriotism

"Language is a marker of identity. In Italy, for example, both a priest and a mafia man speak Italian, because they are both Italians," the journalist explained.

It was this identity marker that dictator Vladimir Putin used when he officially announced the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. "The goal is to protect the people who have been subjected to abuse and genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years. And for this purpose, we will strive for the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine," he said at the time.

People who escaped from Mariupol and Bakhmut are Russian speakers

"Not all of them. For many, it's the opposite. Russian has become a retraumatizing trigger," the blogger noted.

We should encourage people to speak Ukrainian, not force them to

"In most civilized countries, you won't get a student visa or official employment without knowing the state language. It is possible not to regulate the use of the language in a business context only in Ukraine, because "nothing threatens our identity!" she cited the example of other countries.

The language issue divides the country

"Have you noticed that the country is always divided only by language and never by 'tongue'?" asked Emma Antoniuk a rhetorical question.

The guys in the trenches also speak Russian

"If you are a guy or a girl in a trench, speak as you want. You don't have to ask anyone for permission. If you are not in the trenches, you should be very ashamed of yourself for exploiting someone else's feat in favor of your own laziness," she says.

Earlier, singer and soldier Taras Topolia told OBOZ.UA in an interview that even at the front, soldiers who have spoken Russian all their lives are becoming Ukrainianized because they want to.

Historically, it happened that way

"Aha! Hundreds of historical bans on the Ukrainian language have made you a 'Russian speaker,'" Emma Antoniuk said.

We understand each other anyway

"No, I have the right not to understand Russian today," she explained because Russian is a foreign language for Ukraine, not the state language.

My mother used to sing me lullabies in Russian

"For your mother to sing you lullabies in Russian, the empire had to Russify your grandmother and great-grandmother. Because of colonialism and genocide, Ukrainian is not the language of your parents, but it can become the language of your children," the journalist said.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!