You're reading: Antifreeze-October 7, 1999

The symbolism of a red banner with a small, stylized insignia is not wasted on Ukrainians. Whatever their associations with Soviet power, Ukrainians are bound to have a wealth of memories invested in the flag. After all, it was the most prominent symbol of the Communist Party, an entity enamored with the perceived power of simple images.

So why did Nike choose a blatant mock-up of the Soviet flag for its latest ad campaign?

By now we have all seen the Nike signs Р with the small, white swoosh centered on a red board Р plastered on every third billboard in Kyiv. If some enterprising graffiti artist would just cross out the suspiciously sickle-like swoosh with a heady hammer, the illusion would be complete.

I refuse to believe that the savvy ad designers over at Nike inadvertently copied probably the most familiar symbol in Ukraine to use for their own commercial pleasure. Unfortunately, the copyright laws in Ukraine are awfully weak, and the rightful heir to the hammer-and-sickle (Natalia Vitrenko, perhaps?) canХt sue Nike. Just as Pink Dot ТborrowsУ NikeХs ad flagship, Michael Jordan, Nike has borrowed the pinkosХ flag.

Still, the similarity between many of the prominent symbols of communism and consumerism deserves some attention. In Kyiv, a city graced with an abundance of residual Bolshevik symbolism, such parallels are obvious: the red star or Kyivstar; the bald and determined Lenin or the bald and determined Jordan.

While not all of those parallels are intentional, they are equally undeniable. Propaganda, whether used to advance a political system or to sell a shoe, relies on the fact that people are dumber than sheep and easier to prod. Just compare the images and ideals of Nike and the Soviets. Just do it. Sounds like something straight out of StalinХs mustachioed mouth. Reverse the flow of a river? Plant cotton in a desert? Industrialize in five years? DonХt ask questions, or youХll be shot.

Just do it.

Furthermore, images of toil in Nike propaganda are as entrenched as in Soviet Realism. Visit one of KyivХs Nike stores, and you will see images of athletes engaged in superhuman acts, but to what end? Just as in Soviet imagery, they are caught in the middle of some action Р it is not about what they aim to accomplish, but the process of mindless work. Just do it.

Nike also loves splashing the swoosh on every possible surface. Book bags, sweatshirts, team uniforms are all awash in NikeХs corporate logo. A recent swoosh count on a friendХs new sneakers revealed 13 swooshes Р on each shoe. The tactic is reminiscent of a familiar Soviet strategy of bombardment Р that is why Soviet symbolism is still so unavoidable in Kyiv, almost 10 years after the fall of the Reds.

There is, however, one crucial difference between Nike and red propaganda. People buy Nike junk while, aside from misled pensioners and ex-Soviet bureaucrats, most thinking people in Ukraine today ignore or despise LeninХs ideals. We can all be thankful for that.