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.’”
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
Apr 6, 2022
Apr 6, 2022
2 min
April 6th 2022
Stevie jumps on the feed to let you know Yuriy is safe, but is working from Bucha today where the Russians hit the city hard and killed innocent civilians. He is unable to record an episode from his location.
Yuriy will hopefully be back tomorrow with a new episode.
The resources and links to donate as mentioned are below. Thank you for your support for Yuriy and the Ukranian people.
Apr 5, 2022
Apr 5, 2022
3 min
April 5th 2022
Yuriy recalls his friend who lived in Bucha, how she loved the peace and tranquility pf the plentiful nature areas that surrounded it. The news surrounding the war crimes in Bucha leaves Yuriy feeling guilty that he wasn't able to help.
Apr 4, 2022
Apr 4, 2022
3 min
April 4th 2022
Yuriy reads and subsequently reflects upon a story he read yesterday from a woman who finally managed to escape Mariupol after weeks of being trapped by Russians who would not let residents flee. She questions her faith in God, questions the Church officials in Russia who support this war and denounces "hopes and prayers".
Apr 3, 2022
Apr 3, 2022
4 min
April 3rd 2022
TRIGGER WARNING.
Producer's note and script from the intro: Today’s episode contains a description of a sexual and violent attack on a child so I urge you to take caution while listening to this episode. I know that you are aware that this is a podcast about the realities of a war on the ground with real people and this was inevitably a possibility in terms of its content. One of the unique things about Yuriy’s episodes, and the reason I personally am drawn to it, is that while they are informative and grounded in the grim truths of an unjust war - he tends to find some light and human experience within all the darkness. However, in today’s episode, he doesn’t find any. So again, I urge you to listen with caution and give yourself space to process.
Apr 2, 2022
Apr 2, 2022
3 min
April 2nd 2022
Yuriy meets an old non-Ukranian friend from his days as a journalist. Yuriy was unsettled by his friends questions about the future.
Apr 1, 2022
Apr 1, 2022
4 min
April 1st 2022
This year there are no pranks but Yuriy still has his sense of humour. He has a new friend called Lloyd, a Texan and former marine who has some trouble in the kitchen.
Mar 31, 2022
Mar 31, 2022
3 min
March 31st 2022
Yuriy slept on a comfortable mattress for the first time since he enlisted thanks to the generosity of a Ukranian who wanted to help the war effort by donating it to his barracks. His good night's sleep helped him reflect on the pride he feels serving with his comrades. Some of these men performed an operation to rescue their families from an occupied part of Ukraine forming a plan that sounds straight out of a movie about World War II.
Mar 30, 2022
Mar 30, 2022
3 min
March 30th 2022
Yuriy talks about Russian dehumanizing propaganda in an effort to explain how Russian soldiers are justifying the war and their killing Ukranian people.
Mar 29, 2022
Mar 29, 2022
3 min
March 29th 2022
Yuriy's fellow soldier is a playwright, but he is also a soldier and right now his duty is protecting his comrades in the barracks. He sees a direct link between his new role as a soldier to protecting his livelihood and being a playwright once again.
Mar 28, 2022
Mar 28, 2022
3 min
March 28th 2022
Yuiry returns to Kyiv sooner than expected and has not lost his sense of humour. He has a convivial message for his foreign correspondent colleagues about what to expect from their Ukranian hosts...