Crises of Identity: Uncovering the Roots of Ethnic Division in Lviv

As the crisis in eastern Ukraine continues to expand, there has been much discussion about how to address both the influence of outside political actors like Russia as well as the actors within the borders of Ukraine itself. From the continued fighting in the Donbass region to the annexation of Crimea several years ago, Ukraine has found itself embroiled in a bitter conflict, driven in large part by the ethnic ties of its citizens in the eastern region of the country. The conflict between ethnic ties and national identity in Ukraine is hardly new. In the past century alone, control of Ukraine has been chaotic and divisive. The city of Lviv in western Ukraine, for example, changed hands several times in the past hundred years, creating a unique development of identity in the city and subsequent clashes. To fully understand the current conflict that continues to unfurl itself in the eastern portion of Ukraine, one must realize the significance of the historical struggle between ethnicities and nationalities at the hands of those entities that have controlled or influenced Ukraine during the past century. By using Lviv as an example, it becomes obvious that the relative uncertainty with which ethnic groups operated and the ranging attempts by those in power to destroy various ethnic and national identities helped to create a suspended and unsure state for many ethnic groups even today, a tension that has boiled over to create the full-blown crisis that Ukraine still faces