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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Each November, individuals around the globe mark the |
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somber anniversary of the Holodomor, the brutal and systematic |
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starvation inflicted on the Ukrainian people by Joseph Stalin's |
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Soviet regime in 1932 and 1933, an atrocity that resulted in the |
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deaths of millions of people; and |
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WHEREAS, In the years following the formation of the Soviet |
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Union, political and ethnic tensions remained high in Ukraine, and |
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a series of independence movements and revolts occurred throughout |
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the 1920s, threatening Soviet rule; in response, the Stalinist |
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government sought to erode the Ukrainian national identity and |
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quash any resistance; and |
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WHEREAS, Beginning in 1932, an artificial famine was created |
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when Soviet officials greatly increased farm quotas and confiscated |
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livestock, grain, and other crops; residents were confined to the |
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region and purposefully left to starve, even as the Soviets |
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continued to export locally grown grain to other areas; in |
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addition, Ukrainian intellectual, cultural, and religious leaders |
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were targeted for arrest and execution; and |
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WHEREAS, While estimates vary, it is thought that between 3.5 |
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and 10 million Ukrainians perished in the Holodomor, a term meaning |
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"murder by starvation"; moreover, those who spoke out about the |
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true nature of the famine were prosecuted or executed; and |
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WHEREAS, The Holodomor has been recognized as an act of |
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genocide by the United States Senate and the U.S. Commission on the |
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Ukrainian Famine, as well as by legislative bodies in Australia, |
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Canada, Mexico, Poland, and numerous other nations; and |
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WHEREAS, With the threat of genocide and tyranny still |
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present in our world, this horrific episode in human history offers |
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warnings that remain strikingly relevant, and it is incumbent upon |
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the global community to learn from the past in order to prevent |
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similar atrocities from occurring in the future; now, therefore, be |
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it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas |
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Legislature hereby recognize November 2021 as Ukrainian Genocide |
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Remembrance Month and urge the state's residents to reflect on the |
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Holodomor and honor the memory of those who perished. |