Nonprofit addresses Ukrainian basketball player taunted by CSU crowd
For almost one-year, Marina Dubrova has watched from Colorado horrified as Russia has invaded her home country of Ukraine.
"It's been endless pain which I've never experienced before even though growing up in Soviet Union," she said.
She was born there before immigrating to Colorado and like many, she still has family and friends in Ukraine. She says watching them suffer from afar has been very difficult.
"Every one of us Ukrainians. They do feel this pain," she said.
That's why she was disgusted when she saw a video of Ukrainian basketball player Max Shulga being taunted by Colorado State University fans in Fort Collins.
"I see is just a simple ignorance, lack of education, lack of knowledge of what exactly is going on," she said.
On Saturday night, fans chanted the word "Russia" at Shulga. Viewers could hear the chants through CBS Sports' broadcast.
Colorado State University issued an apology on Sunday saying it was a "small group of individuals" and the chant violates their belief in the Mountain West sportsmanship policy.
Shulga issued a statement through his school, Utah State, saying Saturday's chant was disappointing and upsetting but that he appreciates the support from both colleges and he understands that in competition emotions can run high.
Marina says if the fans were trying to be funny, they missed the mark, by a lot.
"I don't see anything funny about it when the innocent lives of civilians kids older people destroyed, killed, raped or assaulted, tortured," she said.
She believes if they support Vladimir Putin, a college basketball game in Colorado isn't the place to show it.
"You should be in Russia fighting for Russia," she said.
She and Ukrainians of Colorado are challenging the university and its students to reach out to them so they can learn about the war and its effect on the Ukrainian people.
"Because they don't know what's going on and that's very sad," she said.
