Between the Devil and Beelzebub, between the cultural Marxism and cultural Stalinism.

The new initiative of  Ministry of Education of Ukraine is directed to abolishment of number of educational courses of humanities academic disciplines  in Ukrainian universities. This fact has caused wave of indignation among educational and popular organisations. Anxiety among nationalist intellectuals and the wider public regards the social and political implications of the educational reform is quite justified in that case.

The abolition of compulsory course in the history of Ukraine arousing the greatest concern and indignation. Undoubtedly, this course does not solve the problems of patriotic education drastically. Furthermore, the model of history teaching in Ukrainian schools and universities is far from ideal, to put it mildly (methodological, ideological and axiological disadvantages of the educational course and similar ideological problems of teachers has openly or covertly anti-Ukrainian position). However a university course of the history of Ukraine compensates for the lack of universal system of patriotic education of youth more or less. Teaching of history in higher and secondary schools played a significant role in the national revival of Ukrainian society, despite a number of shortcomings (this is especially noticeable on the background of political and military confrontation with Moscow).  

More difficult question we have regarding the course of philosophy. On the one hand - the general short educational course of philosophy is a terrible profanation of the concept of philosophy. Merab Mamardashvili ideas on the need of rejection of compulsory study of philosophy in the technical field of education. On the other hand - even a short educational course of the history of philosophy is able to push the limits of consciousness although for some percentage of students even under the condition lack of teaching level of the subject. Even the entry level of education course of philosophy is an antidote to calculate type of thinking in our time in this coordinate system. Even if it will lead to reflections on the fundamental problems for one a few students - this course is not in vain. Another problem - a growing number of epigones of modern destructive ideas from the West (postmodernism, different variations of gender ideology, etc.) are intruding to replace of post-diamat to the Department of Philosophy of Ukraine.

Even if we will accept the abolishment of the educational course of philosophy for some reasons, the rejection of the educational course of the history of Ukraine it is a real sabotage in the war time. Answering the eternal questions of "Who we are? Whose children? Who is our parents? By whom and for what we are chained?" (Taras Shevchenko), history plays a fundamental role in the process of education of the Nation. The lack of proper attention to the teaching of history in universities and schools of Donbass and Crimea became one of the main disadvantages of social engineering on the Russified parts of our country. Now is clearly visible the consequences of the absence of adequate policy, aimed at national revival of Russified in Soviet and post-Soviet period regions of Ukraine. 

The initiative of the Ministry of Education is nonsense from a pragmatic position and cynicism from a moral. But who is responsible for these "innovations"? Although the fact that finding of the correct answers to the questions of "Who we are? Who is our parents?" by Ukrainians is quite unfavorable for Moscow, the initiators of these reforms are oriented in diametrically opposite direction. 

Many of Ukrainian right-wing intellectuals was in shocked by the fact that after the appointment Serhiy Kvit to the post of the Minister of Education his first deputy becomes well known feminist and leftist activist - Inna Sovsun. Most probably, she was the initiator of providing of this educational abolishment (Mrs. Sovsun was the most active defender of this initiative).

In terms of cultural Marxism (cultural Trotskyism), The worshiper of which is Mrs. Sovsun - teaching of the national history in universities is authoritarian, nationalist anachronism. Well, they can use the same definition towards the high-school educational course of the history of Ukraine. They did not have gone too far still (If we talk about administrative methods, but not about the building of methodological basis).

Cultural Marxism, as the most radical version of liberalism, is quite naturally for himself denies the concept of the Nation (as "relic of history"). Therefore it is not surprising, that the people, which are in force field of cultural Marxism (in its different variations), are acting against the concept of understanding of the National History (in the theoretical and methodological plane) or fighting against the history as a factor of the National education. Natalia Yakovenko, Professor of the Kyiv Mohyla Academy is one of those fighters with an adequate understanding of the National History in Ukraine. UAS-Canadian historian Paul Robert Mahochi put a lot of efforts to impose multicultural approach to the National History for Ukrainians. And now they have moved to practical, administrative actions. 

Western and Ukrainian cultural marxists talking about their hostility to the "authoritarian" Russia. But Russian has the sam dominant ideology, we can call it "cultural Stalinism" by analogy with the cultural Marxism. But, they often have a common interests, as we can see. Therefore we cannot trust for one of them in the fight against another. Ukraine is between the cultural Stalinism of imperial Moscow and cultural Marxism of West today. Protect ourselves from both of them is the only way for our national liberation! 

Igor Zahrebelny