Why Ukraine Matters!

Before and up until the U.S. entry into World War II, many people in the nation held protectionist and isolationist dispositions regarding the unfolding of global events. This was the period that followed the Great Depression and the U.S. was in full economic recovery mode under FDR's New Deal. There was also the pervading memory of World War I's economic and life losses. What was happening in Europe with the Nazis was seen as tragic, but it was viewed as far off and far too risky to get mired into with economic uncertainties still in the air. Unfortunately, with such nearsightedness, isolationists were unaware of the weaknesses such an approach had in diplomacy, the pending refugee crisis for those fleeing fascism and totalitarianism, the weakening of the League of Nations, and more. 

FDR had come to the conclusion that the US must support the war effort in Europe well before it entered the war. Yet, for FDR, politics often spoke louder than global necessity. He needed to appease the isolationists. He himself presented some isolationist positions as well. The furthest FDR went before Pearl Harbor was in trade, whether through supplying allies in Europe or trading the British military ships for islands in the Pacific for military and commercial strategy. Eventually, the U.S. did enter the war. Unfortunately, during its pre-war isolationist phase between 1938 and 1941, the U.S. turned away thousands of Jewish refugees because of anti-immigration stances that accompanied its isolationist and nationalist positions. Less than 28,000 immigrants were allowed annually from the war-torn areas of Europe, despite the hundreds of thousands of visa applicants that waited.  

The point above is that the U.S. was slow to respond and because of this, people died that could have been helped. This was the largest war in Europe. The current Ukrainian war is the largest war in Europe since, and like Nazi Germany, Russia's authoritarianism under Vladimir Putin is causing global economic hits, a large refugee problem, and war crimes are being committed. And like Hitler, all clues point to Putin's aspirations for broader territory than just Ukraine. Add to this, Russia is nuclear and Putin is often unhinged. 

This war has many similarities to World War II, including large swaths of the Republican Party calling for isolationism, especially as a point within current economics and immigration fears (often inflated). My fear is that we will do too little and inadvertently cause more deaths, or worse, we might allow a despot to continue in his rabid disconnect.

As a historian, I am oft to parrot the quip that those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it. If World War II teaches us anything it is not to be idle to the suffering of our neighbors because what seems far off and not our problem will eventually become ours. I am a pacifist, but I truly believe the necessity to quell the spread of Russian aggression is a just cause. We need to do more, whatever that is.