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In early 2014, sparked by an assault by their government on peaceful students, Ukrainians rose up against a deeply corrupt, Moscow-backed regime. Initially demonstrating under the banner of EU integration, the Maidan protesters proclaimed their right to a dignified existence; they learned to organize, to act collectively, to become a civil society. Most prominently, they established a new Ukrainian identity: territorial, inclusive, and present-focused with powerful mobilizing symbols.

Driven by an urban "bourgeoisie" that rejected the hierarchies of industrial society in favor of a post-modern heterarchy, a previously passive post-Soviet country experienced a profound social revolution that generated new senses: "Dignity" and "fairness" became rallying cries for millions. Europe as the symbolic target of political aspiration gradually faded, but the impact (including on Europe) of Ukraine´s revolution remained. When Russia invaded-illegally annexing Crimea and then feeding continuous military conflict in the Donbas-, Ukrainians responded with a massive volunteer effort and touching patriotism. In the process, they transformed their country, the region, and indeed the world.

This book provides a chronicle of Ukraine´s Maidan and Russia´s ongoing war, and puts forth an analysis of the Revolution of Dignity from the perspective of a participant observer.

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Mychailo Wynnyckyj is Associate Professor of Sociology at the National University "Kyiv-Mohyla Academy" (where he has also served as Director of the Doctoral School) and holds a cross-appointment to Lviv Business School of Ukrainian Catholic University, where he teaches MBA and Executive Development courses. He was awarded a Ph.D. in Economic Sociology in 2003 from the University of Cambridge, UK. During the 2013-2014 Maidan protests, and subsequently during the early years of Russian aggression in the Crimea and Donbas, Mychailo was a regular commentator for English-language media outlets and provided analysis on current events in his "Thoughts from Kyiv" blog. Since 2015, Mychailo has served as Advisor to Ukraine´s Minister of Education and Science. Born in Canada, he has lived in Kyiv with his wife and four children since 2003. The author of the foreword: Dr. Serhii Plokhy is Mykhailo Hrushevsky Professor of Ukrainian History at Harvard University and Director of the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

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