Freedom is Action: A Campaign for Ukraine

A fundraiser for life-saving drone-jamming cars and trucks

The war in Ukraine is a war of drones, of mechanical pain and death from the sky. The body adjusts. For example, nocturnal urban machine-gun fire is comforting, because it means that Russian drones are being shot down, drones that might otherwise kill you.

A window in Kharkiv, Ukraine. .

That is a small example of a larger reality in which people live and resist.

Ukrainian civilians who are close to the front are hunted by Russian drones and murdered. In Nikopol, which I visited a month ago, Russian drone operators have used civilian automobiles for target practice and have targeted and killed babies in strollers.

On the battlefield, Russia uses drones to kill wounded Ukrainian soldiers and to destroy the ambulances and other vehicle sent to evacuate the wounded. Anywhere near the front, Russian drones are a threat to the vehicles in which Ukrainian service members travel.

Readers of this substack, Thinking About, have been great contributors to three campaigns by the presidential platform United24. We have raised funds to protect Ukrainian cities from Russian attacks; to purchase armored evacuation vehicles; and to fund robots that can evacuate the wounded. Thank you. The work that we have done together has saved many lives, and has helped Ukrainians feel less alone.

I go to Ukraine because I am a historian and I have work to do there. But I also go to visit the front and my friends and to find out what is needed and what we can do. Today I am hoping that you will help me with a new campaign with a very special focus. It involves a pressing need at the front. Drones can be jammed and lives can be saved, but people need the right equipment — quickly.

My friends in the Khartiia, the 2nd Corps of the Ukrainian national guard, need thirty automobiles with the ability to jam Russian drones. Among other missions, Khartiia is defending the border at Kharkiv. I have visited them at the front, and have friends serving in this unit, and know the commanders.

Serhyi Zhadan, one of the world’s great writers, is serving in Khartiia.

In Ukraine, the armed services are decentralized. Local commanders have a good deal of autonomy. Different units need different things at different times. The Ukrainian state is incredibly functional in wartime conditions, but it cannot supply everything. This is where fundraisers and helpful non-governmental organizations come in. If you donate to this campaign, reliable and experienced Estonian partners will purchase the vehicles, fit them with anti-drone jammers, and deliver them exactly where they are needed at the front. This will save lives.

If you click on the button you will see that there are many ways to donate, including, for Americans, a way to do so as a tax deduction. There are also patches on offer with original artwork as well as a chance to get autographed copies of my book On Freedom.

My Ukrainian friends chose to call this campaign Freedom is Action. And they are making an important point. There are so many sources of fear and anxiety right now. And it would all be so much worse if Ukrainians were not defending themselves and setting and example for others. One way to find our own courage is to act in support those who are showing it. Those who serve in Khartiia are taking huge risks to their lives every day. They are asking for our help.

Please help them if you can, and please share this post with others who might be interested.

Infantrymen serving in Khartiia who for some reason used r&r time to listen to a historian perorate in bad Ukrainian

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