On November 21, 2013, several hundred people gathered on Independence Square in Kyiv to protest against the government's decision, which threatened Ukraine's independence and jeopardized its European future.
The Donetsk Maidan began on November 21, 2013, near the Taras Shevchenko monument. Like the one in Kyiv, it began with a call on social media and was a reaction to the refusal to sign the association agreement between Ukraine and the European Union, and later intensified due to the violent dispersal of students in Kyiv.
That day, about a hundred Donetsk residents came to the city center to express their solidarity with the protesters in Kyiv. The protesters held posters with slogans such as "Today the opposition is in prison, tomorrow it will be the whole nation," "EU - from Lisbon to Donbas!" and Ukrainian flags.
From that day on, the protest became indefinite and round-the-clock with night shifts, and concerned Donetsk residents brought tea, honey, sandwiches, and warm clothes to the protest site.
"Our Maidan was not political. Yes, political parties participated in it, but we agreed to only use Ukrainian flags. So we designed and printed a flag for the Donetsk Euromaidan. We had our own branded symbols and ribbons," says Kateryna Zhemchuzhnikova, a participant in the Donetsk Maidan.
"Personally, I was in favor of European association, of Ukraine's continued movement toward the West. And when I first went to the EuroMaidan forum in Kharkiv on January 11, I heard that people from different regions were coming out for different things. Most people were not in favor of association with the EU. They were coming out for national revival, against banditry, against taxes, and so on," recalls Volodymyr Fomichov, a participant in the Donetsk EuroMaidan.
Throughout November and December 2013, Donetsk EuroMaidan activists held motorcades, painted patriotic pictures, distributed brochures, collected financial aid for the main Maidan, and traveled to Kyiv for protests.
In December 2013 and January 2014, the Donetsk Euromaidan expanded in scale—three marches were held through the city's central streets to mobilize the population, and a cultural and educational program was held every evening at 6 p.m. Prominent Ukrainian figures came to support the Donetsk Euromaidan: the band Haydamaky, writer Serhiy Zhadan with his rock band Dogs in Space, Vakhtang Kipiani, and other well-known cultural figures, musicians, and journalists.
The "hot" phase of the confrontation in Donetsk developed in parallel with the events of the Revolution of Dignity in Kyiv. Activists were persecuted and intimidated, and participants in rallies were photographed for further pressure.
Although the protests in Donetsk remained significantly smaller than those in Kyiv, they gave rise to a series of public initiatives that launched a dialogue about the future of the region, independence, and Ukraine's choice.
The history of the Donetsk Euromaidan shows that Donetsk was part of the general wave of protest that swept across Ukraine. People took to the streets despite the pressure and atmosphere of fear created by the authorities at the time and fueled by the "titushki" (thugs hired to attack protesters)... The fact that they stood their ground until the very end is an example of civic heroism.
These events show that Donetsk did not remain silent when it came to dignity, justice, and the choice to be part of the European space.
Donetsk is Ukraine!