The Center Condemns Russia’s Genocidal Rhetoric, Genocidal Intentions, and Genocidal Acts

The Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes Against Humanity at the Graduate Center—CUNY condemns the massacres of civilians carried out by Russian troops in the occupied territories of Ukraine since the start of Russia’s invasion. Abundant evidence proves that the massacres are not isolated and exceptional phenomena: together with indiscriminate destruction of civilian infrastructure, looting, and deportations, these massacres are the result of a strategic campaign to eliminate Ukraine’s existence. Statements by public figures and analysts broadcast by Russian state-run media outlets explicitly advocate for de-ukrainization, and for the elimination of the Ukrainian people, thus openly espousing genocidal rhetoric and promoting genocidal intention. We urge the international community to respond to this escalation from war crimes to genocide by increasing humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine and enforcing an embargo on Russian oil and gas. 

Debórah Dwork, Center Director

Center Advisory Board:

Elissa Bemporad, Ungar Chair in East European Jewish History and the Holocaust, Professor, Department of History, Queens College, and Graduate Center-CUNY

Francesca Bregoli, Joseph and Oro Halegua Chair in Greek and Sephardic Jewish Studies, Associate Professor, Department of History, Queens College, and Graduate Center-CUNY

Benjamin Carter Hett, Professor, Department of History, Hunter College and Graduate Center-CUNY

Eli Karetny, Deputy Director, Ralph Bunche Institute 

Steven P. Remy, Professor, Department of History, Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center-CUNY 

Victoria Sanford, Professor of Anthropology, Lehman College; Founding Director, Center for Human Rights & Peace Studies; Doctoral Faculty, Department of Anthropology, Graduate Center-CUNY

John Torpey, Presidential Professor of Sociology and History, Director of the Ralph Bunche Institute for International Studies, Graduate Center-CUNY

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