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Ukrainian heritage is in peril. The Smithsonian hopes to rescue what it can

Rubble and a damaged vehicle is seen across the street from the Kyiv TV Tower on Wednesday.
Chris McGrath
/
Getty Images
Rubble and a damaged vehicle is seen across the street from the Kyiv TV Tower on Wednesday.

As more than one million people flee Ukraine during Russia's invasion, they leave behind cultural and historical touchstones at risk of being destroyed. The Smithsonian has announced an initiative to help save and preserve them.

"The beauty of Ukraine's art, architecture, literature, and music has flourished for decades; its museums are some of the most revered in Europe," said Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch in a statement Thursday. "If we are to attain a time when people of all cultures, faiths, and nationalities can peacefully coexist, we must first understand ourselves and each other."

Ukraine is home to seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the Saint-Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. Also in the city is the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial, dedicated to the nearly 34,000 Jews killed by Nazis in 1941. A TV tower next to the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center was struck by a projectile earlier this week, reportedly killing five people.

The Smithsonian says its Cultural Rescue Initiative is in touch with people in the country who specialize in preserving cultural heritage in times of crisis. The program has worked in Iraq, Haiti, and Puerto Rico, rescuing and restoring cultural items after natural disasters and military occupations.

"When we lose irreplaceable history and culture, it is a profound loss to us all," read the statement from Bunch. "If we instead work together to celebrate, share, and protect cultural heritage, we are ensuring the triumph of our humanity."

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Andrew Limbong is a reporter for NPR's Arts Desk, where he does pieces on anything remotely related to arts or culture, from streamers looking for mental health on Twitch to Britney Spears' fight over her conservatorship. He's also covered the near collapse of the live music industry during the coronavirus pandemic. He's the host of NPR's Book of the Day podcast and a frequent host on Life Kit.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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