12/14/2025
THE UKRAINIAN HERO CANADA SHOULD HAVE HONOURED 🇺🇦🇨🇦
When Ukrainian President Zelenskyy visited Canada’s Parliament in September 2023, a shameful mistake was made. Instead of celebrating genuine Ukrainian-Canadian heroism, they honored Yaroslav Hunka - a man who served in a N**i Waffen-SS unit during WWII. Speaker Anthony Rota resigned over the scandal.
But there WAS a Ukrainian hero worthy of recognition:
Corporal Filip Konowal, VC 🎖️
Born in Ukraine (1887), Konowal became the ONLY Ukrainian-Canadian to receive the Victoria Cross - the highest military honour for valor. At the Battle of Hill 70 in August 1917:
✨ Led his section against impossible odds
✨ Personally killed at least 16 enemy soldiers in 2 days
✨ Single-handedly destroyed multiple machine gun positions
✨ Bayoneted 3 enemies in a cellar, killed 7 more in a crater
✨ Continued fighting until severely wounded
His citation reads: “For most conspicuous bravery and leadership…this non-commissioned officer alone killed at least sixteen of the enemy, and during the two days’ actual fighting carried on continuously his good work until severely wounded.”
After the war? Despite being a decorated war hero, Konowal struggled. He suffered from war wounds that affected his mental health. Prime Minister Mackenzie King noticed Konowal’s VC ribbon while he worked as a Parliament Hill janitor and gave him a position in the PM’s office - but this hero deserved so much more.
Filip Konowal died in 1959. His Victoria Cross was stolen from the Canadian War Museum in the 1970s and only recovered in 2004.
THIS is the Ukrainian-Canadian hero whose service should have been brought to President Zelenskyy’s attention. Not a N**i collaborator, but a man who fought WITH courage, honour, and extraordinary bravery for his adopted country.
Remember the right heroes. 🌻
