'Like crazy dystopian movies': Ukrainian Canadians in London react with disbelief to Russian invasion

Ukrainian Canadians living in London are on pins and needles as many of their relatives seek out safety. 

“I try to be there for people and say ‘oh stay strong’ or ‘be brave’ but you don’t really feel it until it happens to your own people and to your family,” said Sergiy Dybskiy, who came to Canada with his parents in 2007.

The family’s home town of Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine is close to the conflict. Their friends and family back home are sending videos of bombings and Russian forces moving in by tank.

“It’s like, it’s like in crazy mind you would never think that Russian can fight against Ukraine,” said Sergiy’s father, Pavlo Dybskiy. “It’s like whole families, close. It’s unimaginable, unimaginable. It’s totally in like crazy dystopian movies.”

Canada has the largest global Ukrainian population in the world, and many families still have close ties to Ukraine. 

That’s why Western University political scientist Erika Simpson believes Canada may be positioned take in a large number of Ukrainian refugees.

“Will Canada take them? We only took 20,000 Afghan refugees,” said Simpson. “Only 20,000, so will we take more? I’m sure we’ll take more than 20,000 because of the Ukrainian diaspora. So we’ll be accepting a lot of Ukrainians, who’ll be fleeing today, into Poland.”

In the meantime, the Dybskiy family can only wait and hope that their loved ones find safety.

“There was gunfire there, and they were leaving, our relatives, my wife’s close relatives, they were leaving in that area, and now they fled in the car, and it’s unimaginable,” remarked Pavlo.

“Do you go to the outskirts where there’s Russian tanks surrounding your city, or do you just try to stay put in a neighbourhood where you’re hoping nothing will happen?” added Sergiy.