Mini Ethnography: Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Mini Ethnography
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Mini Ethnography
Russia's invasion of Ukraine accounts for a wide range of implications for its citizens across the country's social, political, and economic domains. The country's economic sanctions, for instance, account for widespread unemployment due to the closing down of multinational corporations such as McDonald's, which shut down over 800 of its outlets across the nation CITATION Nol22 \l 1033 (Nolan 2022). Economic sanctions target key Russian banks, members of the country's oligarch, and other individuals with close ties to the Kremlin. The country faces further exclusion from the global sporting events and even isolation from research organizations and activities in protest of the invasion of Ukraine CITATION Int22 \l 1033 (Group 2022). Media coverage of the ongoing conflict is characteristic of widespread misinformation. Both countries accuse each other of spreading fake news and distorted information towards winning the support of their citizens and sympathizers around the world. Russian crackdown on protesters, social media activists, media outlets condemning the government's actions in Ukraine, and the nation's propaganda machine, limit access to Russians' genuine views and perspectives on the invasion CITATION Kra22 \l 1033 (Kralova 2022). Thus it becomes a challenge to understand the implications of the war on Russians and their opinions or perspectives on their government's invasion of Ukraine. The knowledge of the stated challenges and limitations of the biased coverage of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the need to voice the perspective of Russian citizens on the same informed the development of this mini ethnographic project. Provided herein is a mini ethnography project based on a short filmed interview of a Russian family sharing their feelings, views, and perspectives on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
A Moment of Truth
The project builds around a short documentary film on a Russian family whose members share their feelings and views on Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The film begins with a short clip of a speech delivered by President Vladimir Putin on February 23, 2020, before his country invaded Ukraine on the following day CITATION Rus22 \l 1033 (Family 2022). The film then shifts from the short video clip of President Putin's press conference to show the recorded responses of the Russian family members to some interview questions on Russia's invasion of Ukraine. At the beginning of the film, Putin's introductory remarks reiterate the country's longstanding foreign policy goals and public statements of Russia's respect for Ukraine's sovereignty and autonomy CITATION Rus22 \l 1033 (Family 2022) (Putin. 0.0-0.25). Daria and Polina's father, Aleksey, then responds to an interview question on whether or not he thought there would be a war with Ukraine (0:30). Aleksey, 41, who lives and works in Moscow, Russia, responds to Putin's speech by saying that no one expected the country to invade Ukraine, especially after the president remarked on respect for international law and Ukraine's sovereignty. He is astonished and finds it hard to believe that his country would take such a course of action in the 21st century CITATION Rus22 \l 1...