Editor’s note: Sarah Friedman worked as a photography intern for The Durango Herald from 2010-11. She joined Peace Corps in Ukraine in 2011. While in the Peace Corps, she taught English; created the first ramp to a school for disabled students in her town; built her town’s first English library; directed several English camps; and taught several seminars on HIV to students, teachers and psychologists.

By Sarah Friedman

Special to the Herald

I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Ukraine for nearly three years when I suddenly heard, “Pack all of your things as if you were leaving Ukraine for the U.S. Meet me tomorrow. Don’t tell anybody you’re leaving.”

It was 3 a.m. I was stunned. While working there, Ukraine became my home. I had three “Ukrainian mothers” who ensured that I was “eating well” even if it meant forcing me to eat double what I wanted. My friends there who didn’t speak English would play Twister and watch Charlie Chaplin with me until my Russian became good enough to hold conversations with them.

My town was in the center of Ukraine. Almost everyone in my small town knew Ukrainian and Russian and often mixed the two languages. To be more accurate, most people in my town spoke Surzhyk – a mix of Russian and Ukrainian. Ukraine is only about 23 years old, so most people speak a mixture of Ukrainian and Russian in the east. In the west, people speak either pure Ukrainian, or mix it with Polish or Hungarian. Even though the people in my town spoke a mixture of languages, nobody I knew identified himself as Russian or viewed speaking Russian as a political statement.

“Ukraine” is a word derived from old Slavic which means “borderland.” Even today, it is on the border between Russia and Europe.

Ukraine presently is at risk of war with Russia. Part of the problem is that Ukraine has traditionally been corrupt and has been financially supported by Russia, which hoped to bring Ukraine into its sphere of influence. For those who oppose corruption, the recent revolution has attempted to bring Ukraine more into the sphere of Western influence.

Ukraine has a history of corruption. According to Transparency International, Ukraine is ranked 144 out of 177 of most corrupt countries. I saw some corruption firsthand while working there. During the recent unrest, the teachers at my school were not paid. The teachers told me this was normal because Ukraine is a poor country, and hopefully the teachers would get their money eventually. Later, they were offered money only if they went to Kiev and demonstrated their support for the corrupt president, Viktor Yanukovich, who was supported by Russia. When this happened, my school took immediate action to oppose this maneuver.

Ukrainian and European Union flags began decorating a few of the classrooms, and the dining hall staff made sandwiches for the protestors in Kiev. One teacher worked as an emergency medical technician in Kiev, and two students protested in Kiev – all in support of a new government with increased collaboration with Europe.

My two students who protested in Kiev at first claimed it was “fun.” They posted photos of friends, food and concerts on Twitter. In the beginning, I followed my students on Twitter and encouraged them to stay at the peaceful protests.

Ukraine had deposed the same president from office in the past through peaceful protests, and most Ukrainians believed that it would happen again. Then one of my protesting students posted a photo of himself with a broken nose. He later reported that the president had begun to hire people to block protestors. The president and his government paid people who needed money to attack protesters before they arrived at designated areas to begin protesting. The government hired militants, so that the police would be perceived as innocent.

The majority of Ukrainians would prefer a government without corruption – the question is how to get there. Some believe that if Ukraine joined Russia, corruption would persist, but the type of corruption would be known. With Russian support, this situation could be tenable.

Other Ukrainians believe that with an alliance with the European Union, Ukraine could receive sufficient support to produce a new government with less corruption.

Almost all Ukrainians would prefer to avert war. Partisanship is divided partially on the basis of geographical location (eastern Ukraine is adjacent to Russia, and Western Ukraine is adjacent to Europe) and partially on the basis of age (older Ukrainians tend to prefer closer ties to Russia, and younger Ukrainians tend to prefer closer ties to the European Union).

When I Skype with my Ukrainian friends, they don’t want to talk about politics. They feel powerless. Ukraine is the size of Texas. Ukraine does not have nuclear weapons because it gave them up in a multi-national deal in 1996 that promised them protection as a nation from any attack.

Ukraine, therefore, has weak defenses against strong attackers. It is ironic that Russia was one of the parties to sign the initial agreement. One of my Ukrainian friends has already moved to Poland. Another is trapped in Russia because the borders to Ukraine closed while she was visiting. Nobody knows what the future will bring Ukraine, and it is difficult to speculate a positive outcome.