About 60 people gathered in front of Kingston City Hall Thursday evening, carrying placards and Ukrainian flags to show support for the country’s people as they face down a Russian invasion instigated by Vladimir Putin.
Katrina Korotky and Taissa Martschenko are co-presidents of the Queen’s University Ukrainian Student Association and organized the rally.
“It’s heartbreaking. I think it’s just awful,” said Korotky referring to the situation in Ukraine.
“There’s not one word that I can use to describe it, it’s just every day being scared to check, look at your phone, scared to listen to the news because you don’t know what’s happening,” said Marstchenko, referring to the anxiety the hostilities have caused her.
Both Korotky and Martschenko were born in Canada but say they still have extended family in Ukraine.
According to the United Nations, more than one million people have fled Ukraine since the outbreak of hostilities.
Third-year Queen’s University Health Sciences student and Ukrainian national Illia Gelman says his family is among those that are now refugees.
“My parents, my brother, my grandparents as well, all of them have left Kyiv about three days ago and have been by the border, they just recently crossed the border with Romania,” said Gelman.
While that news has come as some relief, Gelman says he still has friends that are in harm’s way.
“A lot of my friends are still back in Kyiv and some of my friends are in Kharkiv right now which is getting bombed pretty heavily, so I can’t say it’s that great a relief but it’s been getting better,” said Gelman.
Those that participated in the protest are calling for an end to the war, now in its second week, and want Russian troops to leave Ukrainian territory.