CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - A small but passionate group gathered at the old Water Tower on North Michigan Avenue Sunday afternoon to remember victims of oppression in the Soviet Union in the 1930s and 40s.
Elena Kaspirovich was one of the organizers who read the names of the dead and said Russia today remains a place of oppression and fear.
“It’s [a] strong Russian community in Chicago, but, unfortunately, not each member of [the] Russian community [is] against Putin,” Kaspirovich said. “We’re here, and it’s not some big group of Russian people, unfortunately…We are standing against Putin, we are standing against his regime.”
The Remembrance Day for the Victims of Political Repression is an annual day when victims of political repression in the Soviet Union are remembered and mourned across the Russian Federation. About two million Russians were killed during that time, millions more were imprisoned.
The day is normally observed on Oct. 30.
“At least when I was here [Russia], Stalin’s crimes were acknowledged, but, now, these kind of commemorations might get you in trouble, so it was always important for me to come out and remember, but now it’s especially important.”
Names of the dead were read off to remember.
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