Like both of us (your co-hosts Polina and Yelena) Viktoria was born in the Soviet Union. VIktoria immigrated to the USA from Kiev with her family when she was 10. After getting interested in politics a few years ago, Viktoria started a highly successful Instagram page (communistsurivivor) , as a place to share her experiences and political opinions. Viktoria's childhood in the former Soviet Union has shaped her politics and inspired her to share the realities of life under communism.

We hope that Viktoria's thoughts on the differences between life in the Soviet Union and the opportunities available in the U.S. encourage you to apply a critical eye when you come across communist and anti-capitalist propaganda.

If you have experience of living under an oppressive regime, and when you grow up listening to the stories of how your parents and grandparents struggled, you are more likely to treasure the immense privileges that come with freedom. We feel this perspective is particularly relevant in today's heated climate, where many college students in the West are expressing hatred for their own country without a basic understanding of the historical realities and struggles that led to their freedoms.

Viktoria on Instagram

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Notable Quotes:

"Being a Communism survivor is something that definitely molds you into a certain way of being."

"We won the lottery because we were able to not only come here, but we have the relativity of the two worlds that make us so grateful and so patriotic."

"If you're not involved in politics, politics is going to get involved in you."

"The problem with communism is that it doesn't take human nature into account."

Topics Discussed:

• 02:35 The Telepathy Tapes
• 03:59 Adolescence on Netflix
• 05:55 Intro to Viktoria
• 16:20 Communism will never work with humans because it's incompatible with human nature
• 21:27 Most people in the west don't recognize the patterns of anti-government protests
• 21:53 Victoria started Communism Survivor after becoming passionate about politics
• 25:35 Advice for those trying to grow their Instagram accounts
• 33:22 Being banned on Instagram several times
• 39:50 Trump's treatment of Ukraine
• 50:12 Vktoria's career in integrative nutrition