July 4th commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, when the United States began its fight for sovereignty from Great Britain. As the US observes the 249th anniversary of its founding, Ukrainian Americans and Ukrainians living in the US and in Ukraine reflect on how Ukraine is fighting for its independence today. Kyiv Post caught up with several of them asked them how they feel about their dual identity in the current political climate.
Some had grown up in the Soviet Union, while others were born in independent Ukraine or even in the US. They all shared a sense of pride in both identities, but expressed concern about the state of affairs in both Ukraine and the US. This was a common theme for many of the people living in the US, especially following the Trump administration’s decision this week to cut off the supply of certain weapons to Ukraine despite it facing increasing Russian drone and missile attacks.
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Yaroslav P.
The 26-year-old was born in the Ukrainian city of Bila Tserkva and moved to the US with his family at the age of five where he was raised in the Ukrainian neighborhood of Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. He was training to be a commercial pilot when Russia began its full-scale invasion, and he returned to Ukraine in December 2023 to fight in the Ukrainian army.
“Generally, I have always been proud to carry the title of ‘Ukrainian American.’ Ukraine has always been a part of my identity, and it came first. Despite that, I did assimilate in America and adopted it as a part of my identity. Most Americans don’t realize just how much Ukrainians revere the United States.”
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“Any time soldiers here find out I hold American Citizenship, they ask me, ‘Why would you come here?’ I don’t regret coming back despite how hard a journey it has been. On the 4th, I think of the first time I was able to properly recite the Pledge of Allegiance as a young kid and what that meant for me, especially the last line, ‘with liberty and justice for all.’ I wonder day to day if we have become lost, and if there is a way back.”
“The America I knew and remember growing up, I see more in Ukraine now. No matter which side of the political aisle you are on, we should at least have a core set of principles we all agree on and defend no matter what. America is an experiment, and modern democracy is a new concept. I don’t want to see that fail. I guess this is the time when we see democracy receive its ultimate test. I pray we don’t fail. I think we will triumph despite how bleak it looks. Don’t lose hope.” — Yaroslav P. callsign “Veselka”
Yaroslav serves in the Ukrainian infantry. “Don’t lose hope.”
Marko B.
This 20-year-old Ukrainian American is from Kyiv who moved to Chicago with his family after the Euromaidan.
“We had a couple of friends in Chicago, which is where my parents decided we would move, and in August of 2014, we first got to America. The first couple of years felt strange as I was not fully fluent in English yet, but making friends wasn’t a problem, which made being in America a lot easier.”
“I would say by around 2018, I had fully integrated into American society. By that point, I started to forget Russian, which was my native language (I thankfully learned Ukrainian down the line), and began to almost forget about Ukraine and my past there. I still was visiting Ukraine every now and every time I came back, I was reminded how much I really love Ukraine and particularly Kyiv. Before the full-scale invasion, I was in Kyiv in January of 2022 on winter break from school, and I genuinely until the very last moment couldn’t believe that Russia was going to invade the way they did.”
This year, Marko made the decision to leave his studies and return to Ukraine.
“Then in May of 2025 after working for a whole year at a pizzeria to afford my gear, plane tickets, and other things related to the journey, me and my girlfriend flew to Poland, and after spending some time with my girlfriend on June 7 I crossed the border into Ukraine with one of my friends who was accompanying me on my return to Ukraine.”
“Although the whole process of coming back to Ukraine was extremely hard both emotionally and physically, I understand the importance of this decision to come back to fight for my country. While my family is still upset, they still will support me, and I wouldn’t be able to do this journey alone without the support of my friends and loving girlfriend which I am very thankful for another part is that while being in America I truly started to love Ukraine like I have never loved it before. I started looking at not only the history, but also the culture, the language, and everything in between, and being in Ukraine for the last 3 weeks has really put everything into place, and I truly believe that coming back was a good decision to make.”
Adriana Leshko
A second-generation Ukrainian American who works in the performing arts. She was born in Massachusetts and has lived for many years in Manhattan’s Ukrainian Village, where her grandparents once owned a neighborhood coffee shop, “Leshkos” – a pillar of the community.
“Every summer, Ukrainians gather in or around Hunter, New York – a place they were drawn to because it reminded them of the Carpathian Mountains. I’ll be driving my parents there on the 4th, and it feels bittersweet, at a time when the current [Trump] administration is gleefully celebrating withholding life and culture-saving weapons from Ukraine, effectively trying to topple one of the most important global bastions of ‘small d’ democracy. I hope we can use this time to reflect on the incredible contributions immigrants have made to this country since its inception, and to think collectively about how to save two countries that are so integral to our sense of twinned identities.”
Anton S.
Born in the Soviet Union but grew up in Kyiv. He is a 40-year-old software engineer who moved to the US nine years ago and now lives in California. He and his wife recently naturalized and became US citizens.
“I love the [American] people, and love the culture. One of the big reasons I always dreamed of migrating to the US was that it was the anchor of global democracy. I thought that it’s one of these places that have gotten the anti-autocracy vaccine and developed immunity against tyranny. As the 4th of July comes, I’m getting mixed feelings. I don’t know what we (and I subconsciously started already counting myself in) as a country are standing for, and who we are standing with.”
Oksana Banchuk
A resident of Washington, DC, she is originally from the Ivano-Frankivsk region who came to the US as a student in 2005. She began volunteering shortly after the full-scale invasion, bringing donated ambulances to Ukraine. Last year, she took up a position as the Associate Director of Government Affairs for the NGO “Razom for Ukraine,” where she advocates for Ukraine on Capitol Hill.
“As a Ukrainian who has lived in America for nearly 20 years, I’ve witnessed what true independence means from both sides of the ocean. While I’ve built a life in the safety of the United States, my heart has never left Ukraine. For the past three years, as I’ve traveled back regularly to deliver aid, I’ve heard missiles fly overhead, seen explosions light up the night sky, and felt deep, unshakable gratitude for those who risk everything to defend our land. Every July 4th reminds me that independence isn’t just a date on a calendar – it’s the right to live, to speak, to exist as a free people. When I see fireworks here, I think of the explosions back home. When I hear ‘land of the free,’ I think of Ukraine’s brave souls standing guard over that freedom today. Our fight for independence didn’t end with historical declarations – it continues every moment our people refuse to surrender their identity, their land, their right to exist. This is what true independence looks like: the human spirit’s refusal to be conquered.”
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