FARMINGTON – The weekly peace vigil in front of the post office took place amid falling snow flakes and billowing yellow-and-blue flags Friday, as participants sought to raise awareness of the ongoing Russian invasion of the eastern European nation.
Janine Winn, a Temple resident who spent three years in Ukraine as part of the Peace Corps, said that she was hoping to both raise awareness and advocate for responsible action on the part of the American government to support the Ukrainians from what she described as a “totally unprovoked” attack by Russia. Observers have warned of mounting civilian casualties as the fighting enters a number of eastern Ukrainian cities this week, including the capital, Kyiv, following an announcement by Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week that his country was conducting a “special military operation.”
“The Ukrainian people are very loyal to their country,” Winn said. “And when Russia took the Crimea and the Donbas [in 2014] the world just stood by and didn’t react. And we have to.”
Others at the protest said they were “heartbroken” by violence, with some tying yellow and blue ribbons around their arms.
The peace vigil began in 2002 to protest the war in Afghanistan, initially by the Women in Black, a group that protests human rights abuses, but also involving others. The vigil takes place every Friday, in front of the Farmington post office at noon.