Fighting For Ukraine
Yuriy Matsarsky is a Ukranian journalist turned civilian fighter against the Russian invasion on the democratic country of Ukraine. In this podcast he brings daily updates from the frontlines of the Ukranian resistance. “As a journalist I thought, ‘You shouldn’t be involved in this. You should be watching from the sidelines.’ But the Ukrainian citizen part of me told me, ‘No, this doesn’t work anymore. You should protect your country, you should protect your loved ones, you should protect your freedom—you should protect your people.’”
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Yuriy Matsarsky
Yuriy is a Ukranian journalist based in Kyiv who has spent most of his professional media career covering warzones. Now he finds himself in one and the battle is his. Yuriy has put down his journalist pen and picked up a rifle to protect his country against the Russian invasion.
“I want Ukraine to be prosperous, to be a happy country, my people all around me to be happy. Putin is following in the steps of Hitler right now. Every day, with every bombing, with every rocket fire, it’s more and more and more dead Ukrainians. More dead Ukrainians.
“This fight is not only for us. We are fighting for the whole world. I really, really love the United States, and the United States people. We love the same music, we love the same books, we love our kids in the same way. Please help us.”
Episodes
Thursday Mar 24, 2022
Thursday Mar 24, 2022
March 24th 2022
The war in Ukraine has been raging for 4 weeks - thanks to the will of the Ukranian people for holding off the Russian attack. Yuriy seems more used to his role as a civilian turned military man. He reflects on when he was a journalist dealing with civilians in the army in war-torn countries, how annoyed he used to get with them when they wouldn't allow him to photograph or film things for safety reasons and how he now sees their side.
Wednesday Mar 23, 2022
Wednesday Mar 23, 2022
Yuriy Matsarsky, Ukranian journalist turned civilian fighter explains his decision to trade in his Press helmet and join the fight to stop the invasion of his homeland.
This podcast is a series of daily audio diaries where Yuriy brings stories from the front line of the war in Ukraine. Yuriy will continue to post daily as long as he is able and safe to do so.
Wednesday Mar 23, 2022
Wednesday Mar 23, 2022
March 23rd 2022
Yuriy didn't sleep well last night. And it wasn't the usual bombs and shelling that woke him up. He was thinking about the road that led to this war. How the rest of the world allowed Russia's President to go unpunished in 2014 and how he has become so emboldened since then as to think he could take an independent country as his own.
Tuesday Mar 22, 2022
Tuesday Mar 22, 2022
March 22nd 2022
Yuriy attends a wedding of one of the men in his platoon. By now after a global pandemic we are used to virtual weddings, but one with the bride and groom being married from separate locations via Skype due to a war is somewhat unique and when it ends, it ends not with fireworks, but with a bombing. Still, Yuriy and the wedding guests look forward to the day when they can celebrate properly when the war is over.
Monday Mar 21, 2022
Monday Mar 21, 2022
March 21st 2022
A chance encounter on some abandoned meat during a patrol leads to an impromptu BBQ reminding Yuriy of fond summer memories.
Sunday Mar 20, 2022
Sunday Mar 20, 2022
March 20th 2022
The Russians are getting tired and looking like they might lose this war. Remaining Ukranians are indignant in the face of Russian soldiers. Yuriy reflects on why the Russians are not winning the war and any remaining Russian sympathy will die out following this invasion.
Saturday Mar 19, 2022
Saturday Mar 19, 2022
March 19th 2022
Putin may be giving orders but ordinary Russians are firing the rockets. Yuriy thinks about the justifications Russian soldiers are telling themselves and their families while they are committing war crimes on Ukrainians.
Friday Mar 18, 2022
Friday Mar 18, 2022
March 18th 2022
Today marks 3 weeks for Yuriy in the territorial defence army. The motley crew of billionaires, chefs, journalists who signed up to defend their country are now a trained group of soldiers and a unified platoon.
Yuriy reflects on Hiram Johnson's 1918 quote referring to WW1 that "The first casualty of War is Truth" and what it means in the case of Putin and the Russian army and their justifications of war following a day where Ukrainian defences were successful in not allowing the Russians to gain any ground.
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
March 17th 2022
Last weekend a well-known podcaster, Jordan Harbinger, reached out requesting to interview Yuriy for his show. He had heard about Yuriy's story and new podcast and wanted to talk to him in more depth about the invasion on Ukraine and his experiences.
Jordan asks what Yuriy wants the West to know about the Russians, what the day to day life of a territorial army soldier is like, and how does he see this ending...
Jordan is donating all ad revenue proceeds from this episode of his show to the Ukraine crisis. We are grateful that he is highlighting Yuriy's story. Yuriy will be popping up weekly on Friday's on Jordan's Friday Feedback show to provide updates so follow Jordan's show wherever you get your podcasts or check out http://jordanharbinger.com
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
March 17th 2022
Yuriy describes his living conditions in the army where he's been for the last 3 weeks. He is continuing to be a journalist and counts his phone as equally important as his rifle as it allows him to communicate with other journalists and news outlets around the world about what is happening on the ground.