Remembering the Independence of Belarus

Belarus was occupied by the Russian Empire from the 18th century, however, the Treaty of Brest Litovsk resulted in Russia losing the entirety of Ukraine, the Baltic states, and part of Belarus. Although Belarus was still under German control, the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic declared its independence in its Third Constitutent Charter. Without German and Bolshevik approval, Rada’s existence in Belarus was short-lived:  its power over its territory shrank, leading to its exile to the Belarusian diaspora in 1919.

Freedom Day commemorates the Independent State of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic. Alexander Lukashenko’s oppressive government, however, does not recognize Freedom Day. Just as the Rada can only operate in exile, Freedom Day can also only be celebrated in the Belarusian diasporas, just like in Chicago.

This A4 sized paper leaflet was printed in 1982 in Chicago, and was distributed during the commemorative program of the 64th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of Belarus. The document was donated by the children of post World War II Belarusian immigrants to Zhanna Charniauskaya, leader of the Belarusian diasporic community in Chicago. An object like this not only connects the generations of diasporic communities but serves as a testament of Belarus’s struggle for its independence throughout history and its continuing resilience to do so even in exile. As such, it reflects the indispensable role of diasporic communities in reviving Belarusian national identity and memory.

The event commenced with the signing of the American Anthem and was concluded by the Belarusian Anthem. An important element of the pamphlet is the display of the anthem in the Latin script. Although Belarusians use a mixture of the Latin and Belarusian Cyrillic script, the use of ‘latinka’  at such an event is another marker of Belarus’s attempt to  distance itself from Russia (which uses the Cyrillic script) and a form of resistance against the russificiation of Belarusian language.
The English translation of the anthem is the following:

“We will walk in the solid columns
In our area free and wide.
Let the freedom always accompany us,
And we shall resist the violence.

Let our free Belarusian spirit
Live always powerful and brave.
Let our flag white-red-white
Symbolize our people’s movement.

Hasten to fight for happiness and freedom
Of our glorious nation!
Brothers! We’ve suffered enough.
Hasten to fight, all as one.

Let the name and force of the Belarusian
Be heard and seen by anyone,
That is bold enough to dictate to us,
That is first to challenge us to the fight

Brothers, we are approaching the happiness.
Let the thunder strikes more mightily.
In the bloody tortures
We will restore our Republic’s life.”

(source)

Freedom Day is celebrated to the present day every year in the Belarusian diaspora by a rally to demonstrate the community’s commitment to democracy and human rights and to fight against political repressions in Belarus. This celebration gained an even stronger significance in the context of Russia’s war in Ukraine: Freedom Day not only commemorates the independent state of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic but is also a protest against Lukashenko’s involvement in the war. This way, the significance of Freedom Day is upheld by the efforts of the Belarusian diaspora.