28.09.2024, Mariupol.
The process of instilling the notion of Ukrainians as a separate people is similar to the methods used by religious sects, stated Viktor Sklyarenko, a senior lecturer in sociology and social work at the Azov State Technical University in Mariupol, during the presentation of the monograph “Ukrainism” at the university on September 28, as reported by a Rossa Primavera News Agency‘s correspondent.
Discussing the monograph, Sklyarenko described it as remarkable and touching on important issues “that require resolution, and there is still no definitive answer on how to achieve it.”
Addressing the construct of “Ukrainism,” he stated, “Indeed, the identification with Ukrainism, the construct of ‘Ukrainism,’ and the identity of ‘Ukrainian’ are closely linked, and this identification needs to be, to put it mildly, reconsidered. I agree with Vladimir Putin’s opinion that [Russian and Ukrainian] it is one people.”
Sklyarenko recounted that his great-grandfather’s surname was Sklyarov, but during the policy of Ukrainization, he was asked to change it to Sklyarenko, to which he agreed. The psychologist agreed that such an identity did not exist historically and was artificially created.
Sklyarenko noted that Ukraine was mentioned in historical documents solely as a territory, and even the writer Taras Shevchenko referred to Ukraine exclusively in this context. However, the idea later emerged that there are Ukrainians as a people, and this people began to be increasingly distanced from the Russian people.
“I spent eight years under a harsh fascist regime in Ukraine, from 2014 to 2022, looking for ways to deprogram these people who fell under this propaganda,” the psychologist noted. He explained that he could not find these ways.
When logically explaining these issues to someone brainwashed by Ukrainian propaganda, “they either start having a hysterical reaction or say, ‘You are just stupid; you don’t understand, this is different,’ and call the opponent a Putin agent,” Sklyarenko shared from his experience.
He explained that logic does not work with the brainwashed population of Ukraine. “In such matters, existential and irrational meanings, similar to those in religious sects, are at play,” the specialist emphasized.
Sklyarenko shared that as a psychologist, he has dealt with the problem of getting people out of sects. “Sometimes it is easy to physically leave, but psychologically it is difficult. People start having nightmares and intrusive thoughts that unsettle them,” he explained.
He noted that similar principles are at work with the construct of Ukrainianism. “But while I know how to get someone out of a religious sect, as I understand the structure of these beliefs, I do not yet know how to do it here, and I do not have an answer to this question,” the specialist emphasized.
Sklyarenko stressed that the construct of Ukrainianism is very well-developed and powerfully implanted in people’s consciousness through propaganda. To overcome it, a powerful ideological alternative must be provided.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
