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The inhabitants of the city of Novhorodske, 7 kilometers from the front line of Donbass, want to rename the locality New York.
AFP
“It makes more than one smile, our project… Can you imagine? A New York in the war zone! ” Tetiana Krasko dips a sugar in her tea with a knowing smile. The secretary of the small town of Novhorodske, 7 kilometers from the Donbass front line, is well aware of its comic effect. However, the plan to restore this town of some 12,000 inhabitants to its historic New York name is very serious. “It can give us a new lease of life. We really need it. ” The city was founded in the second half of the 18th century by Mennonites, German settlers invited by the Tsar of Russia to develop newly conquered regions. Why the name New York? There are many legends. Some evoke an old German tradition. Others assure that one of the mayors of the village had a lover in the American “Big Apple”. The only established fact is that the Soviet power evacuated the German inhabitants after WWII and changed the name of the city, in 1951. Novhorodske is the Slavic transliteration of New York.
In the wave of name changes required by the so-called “decommunization” laws of 2015, the City Council validates the return to New York. The regional and national authorities have not yet acted on it, due, among other things, to the special status that devolves on the towns located in the war zone. But in town, New York would already be in people’s minds. “Our name change project prompted locals to research our past,” says Tetiana Krasko. She proudly displays a collection of New York stamped tiles, witness to local productions from an ancient time. “There were quality manufactures and high-tech industries here, which you couldn’t find in the rest of the Russian Empire,” she says.
A prestige that has faded over time. Most factories have gone out of business. Today, Novhorodske is one of those typical Donbass municipalities, with decrepit facades and an aging population. The streets, dug with potholes, are traversed by soldiers on their way to the front. The war that has torn apart eastern Ukraine since the spring of 2014 has left at least 10,100 people dead. She did not spare Novhorodske. Next to her collection of tiles, Tetiana Krasko disposed of bullet casings and shell debris that had fallen on the town. “Of course, our situation is not the most enviable,” she admits. But she already wants to see beyond that.
“We can become a tourist curiosity, be an outpost of our new Ukraine … We can refresh the image of the region”, explains the secretary enthusiastically. What if, for want of something better, New York also became a protection against war? “Can you imagine the effect that would have in the media? We bombed New York! Before knowing if we are talking about the metropolis or our small town, it would be a scandal! They should think twice before shooting us! ”
Posted: 12/22/2017, 7:18 p.m.
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