Olga Byrska
@obyrska.bsky.social
PhD researcher in post-WW2 intellectual history at the @EUI_EU. Teaching history at @sciencespo Reims campus. Sometimes making theatre. 🏳️🌈 she/her
📍Paris/Warsaw/elsewhere
📍Paris/Warsaw/elsewhere
Tomorrow, I have the concluding sessions of the "Narratives, Uses and Representations of the Past" course, so, of course, I prepared a meme.
November 24, 2025 at 12:34 PM
Tomorrow, I have the concluding sessions of the "Narratives, Uses and Representations of the Past" course, so, of course, I prepared a meme.
Cursed be procrastination in the library, as I have found the silliest thing ever: an InspiroBot, "dedicated to generating unlimited amounts of unique inspirational quotes". The quotes:
November 22, 2025 at 12:01 PM
Cursed be procrastination in the library, as I have found the silliest thing ever: an InspiroBot, "dedicated to generating unlimited amounts of unique inspirational quotes". The quotes:
This sounds bad. Europe needs to step in, but frankly, I’m not optimistic about that either.
Latest from sources in Kyiv: US officials tell NATO nations that Zelenskyy will be pushed to sign the “peace plan” this week or face an even worse deal in future
US tells Nato if Zelenskyy does not sign peace deal Ukraine will face worse in future
‘No deal is perfect, but it must be done sooner rather than later,’ says US army secretary in sombre meeting
www.theguardian.com
November 22, 2025 at 11:37 AM
This sounds bad. Europe needs to step in, but frankly, I’m not optimistic about that either.
Dear #skystorians, could you please guide me towards an *early* French historiography of World War II and the early postwar (1945-1948)? I am only finding either testimonies/biographies or things related to Algeria/resistance. Thanks!
nb: by early I mean 50s-60s
nb: by early I mean 50s-60s
November 20, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Dear #skystorians, could you please guide me towards an *early* French historiography of World War II and the early postwar (1945-1948)? I am only finding either testimonies/biographies or things related to Algeria/resistance. Thanks!
nb: by early I mean 50s-60s
nb: by early I mean 50s-60s
And another story on the US-Russia plan.
Story here with exclusive new details: The Trump admin and Russian officials have drawn up a sweeping new proposal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine that envisions major concessions from Kyiv and urged President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept it...
via @financialtimes.com
www.ft.com/content/2353...
via @financialtimes.com
www.ft.com/content/2353...
US and Russian officials draft new peace plan for Ukraine
Sweeping 28-point proposal would include territorial concessions and rollback of American military assistance
www.ft.com
November 19, 2025 at 5:53 PM
And another story on the US-Russia plan.
School for ???? Research.
And to think that Hannah Arendt was teaching there. Academic freedom no more.
And to think that Hannah Arendt was teaching there. Academic freedom no more.
The New School is now a place where students cannot major in History, Anthropology, Sociology, Global Policy & International Affairs, Global Studies, Urban Studies, or Environmental Studies. And more pauses, closures, and mergers coming down the pike this week. The future is uncertain.
November 19, 2025 at 4:13 PM
School for ???? Research.
And to think that Hannah Arendt was teaching there. Academic freedom no more.
And to think that Hannah Arendt was teaching there. Academic freedom no more.
The key question now is, what will Europe do?
Well, once again it was shown that Trump's "support" for Ukraine was a con. He has been working with Putin in secret to craft a "peace" deal which the US and Russia will now try to shove down Ukrainian and European throats. Just sent out this free piece. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...
Trump Was Working With Putin The Entire Time
And Now Europe and Ukraine Will Pay The Price
open.substack.com
November 19, 2025 at 3:11 PM
The key question now is, what will Europe do?
I love teaching, even if it sometimes makes me feel like an old auntie. Yesterday I had my students listen to Joni Mitchell for the first time (and that was apropos of our session, since they had to read Zadie Smith's essay on listening to JM). Of course, the presentations delivered:
November 19, 2025 at 8:59 AM
I love teaching, even if it sometimes makes me feel like an old auntie. Yesterday I had my students listen to Joni Mitchell for the first time (and that was apropos of our session, since they had to read Zadie Smith's essay on listening to JM). Of course, the presentations delivered:
Reposted by Olga Byrska
Meanwhile in Poland, between Warsaw and the airport in Dęblin that is mostly used to teach new pilots, notably military ones, a detonation of a railway took place. Yet another episode of the hybrid war.
November 17, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Meanwhile in Poland, between Warsaw and the airport in Dęblin that is mostly used to teach new pilots, notably military ones, a detonation of a railway took place. Yet another episode of the hybrid war.
Meanwhile in Poland, between Warsaw and the airport in Dęblin that is mostly used to teach new pilots, notably military ones, a detonation of a railway took place. Yet another episode of the hybrid war.
November 17, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Meanwhile in Poland, between Warsaw and the airport in Dęblin that is mostly used to teach new pilots, notably military ones, a detonation of a railway took place. Yet another episode of the hybrid war.
Reposted by Olga Byrska
Russia has killed Natalia Khodemchuk,the widow of Valerii Khodemchuk -the first victim of the Chornobyl disaster -during the attack on Kyiv on November 14
Natalia was hospitalized with burns covering 45% of her body
She passed away in the hospital this morning.
Deepest condolences.
Natalia was hospitalized with burns covering 45% of her body
She passed away in the hospital this morning.
Deepest condolences.
November 15, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Russia has killed Natalia Khodemchuk,the widow of Valerii Khodemchuk -the first victim of the Chornobyl disaster -during the attack on Kyiv on November 14
Natalia was hospitalized with burns covering 45% of her body
She passed away in the hospital this morning.
Deepest condolences.
Natalia was hospitalized with burns covering 45% of her body
She passed away in the hospital this morning.
Deepest condolences.
I so wish I could be there! Please register!
January is bleak with nothing happening EXCEPT you can come to the London Metropolitan Archives for my talk on sexuality in the capital during the Second World War, from the cover of the blackout to LGBT+ lives AND new research on the mackintosh fetish scene:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/men-at-war...
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/men-at-war...
Men At War – Lusting Loving Fighting Remembering 1939-1945
Join author Luke Turner to explore how the social upheaval of the Second World War had a profound impact on the sex lives of Londoners.
www.eventbrite.co.uk
November 16, 2025 at 11:13 AM
I so wish I could be there! Please register!
That’s the case with a lot of issues in Poland: the government is far more reactionary than the people it claims to represent.
State research agency CBOS has found its highest-ever level of support in Poland for the introduction of same-sex civil partnerships.
Over 62% are now in favour, up from 52% last year and just 25% in 2011, when the question was first asked.
Over 62% are now in favour, up from 52% last year and just 25% in 2011, when the question was first asked.
Polish state polling agency finds record support for same-sex partnerships
notesfrompoland.com
November 14, 2025 at 11:37 AM
That’s the case with a lot of issues in Poland: the government is far more reactionary than the people it claims to represent.
A new adventure begins: I am the dramaturge of a new Marta Górnicka piece at the Gorki Theatre in Berlin, "Kassandra". Premiering in April, but a workshop open to the public will take place on November 29th! Come over!
November 14, 2025 at 9:18 AM
A new adventure begins: I am the dramaturge of a new Marta Górnicka piece at the Gorki Theatre in Berlin, "Kassandra". Premiering in April, but a workshop open to the public will take place on November 29th! Come over!
Reposted by Olga Byrska
CFP: Intellectual Exchanges Between Revolutionary Africa and the Third World (1950-1990)
https://www.hsozkult.de/event/id/event-158419
Lisbon, 15.12.2025, Georgia Nasseh, University of Cambridge; Giulia Dickmans, Freie Universität Berlin; Raquel Ribeiro, FCSH – NOVA; Tom Stennett, Independent …
https://www.hsozkult.de/event/id/event-158419
Lisbon, 15.12.2025, Georgia Nasseh, University of Cambridge; Giulia Dickmans, Freie Universität Berlin; Raquel Ribeiro, FCSH – NOVA; Tom Stennett, Independent …
www.hsozkult.de
October 30, 2025 at 3:58 PM
CFP: Intellectual Exchanges Between Revolutionary Africa and the Third World (1950-1990)
https://www.hsozkult.de/event/id/event-158419
Lisbon, 15.12.2025, Georgia Nasseh, University of Cambridge; Giulia Dickmans, Freie Universität Berlin; Raquel Ribeiro, FCSH – NOVA; Tom Stennett, Independent …
https://www.hsozkult.de/event/id/event-158419
Lisbon, 15.12.2025, Georgia Nasseh, University of Cambridge; Giulia Dickmans, Freie Universität Berlin; Raquel Ribeiro, FCSH – NOVA; Tom Stennett, Independent …
Reposted by Olga Byrska
La censure a perdu: le colloque aura quand même lieu!
#Palestine #libertés
carep-paris.org/annonce/comm...
#Palestine #libertés
carep-paris.org/annonce/comm...
Communiqué n°2 : Notre colloque se tiendra, comme prévu, les 13 et 14 novembre prochains.
Le colloque « La Palestine et l’Europe » se tiendra les 13 et 14 novembre, réaffirmant la liberté académique et le partage du savoir.
carep-paris.org
November 12, 2025 at 11:17 AM
La censure a perdu: le colloque aura quand même lieu!
#Palestine #libertés
carep-paris.org/annonce/comm...
#Palestine #libertés
carep-paris.org/annonce/comm...
Much recommended talk to all the people in London!
Looking forward to speaking at the Institute of Historical Research Seminar in King's College London next Wednesday evening. I will present research from the @erc.europa.eu COLVET project. Open to all but pre-registration required to attend. Thanks to the organisers www.eventbrite.ie/e/colonial-v...
Colonial Veterans and Citizenship in the French Empire
Presenting research from the project, Ex-Soldiers of Empire; Towards a Comparative History of Colonial Veterancy in the Interwar Period.
www.eventbrite.ie
November 12, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Much recommended talk to all the people in London!
The university based Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, Tübingen College of Fellows, and Zukunftskolleg Konstanz (ZuKo) invite early career researchers, whose work is restricted due to political pressure in the USA, to apply for the Baden-Württemberg Early Career Rescue Fellowships 2026-28.
14 Postdoctoral Fellowships (2 years) - Early Career Rescue Fellowship Programme - Academic Positions
Two-year fellowships for early career researchers unable to work in the USA due to political pressure; open to all disciplines and nationalities.
academicpositions.com
November 12, 2025 at 10:18 AM
The university based Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, Tübingen College of Fellows, and Zukunftskolleg Konstanz (ZuKo) invite early career researchers, whose work is restricted due to political pressure in the USA, to apply for the Baden-Württemberg Early Career Rescue Fellowships 2026-28.
#OTD, in 1918, Poland regained its independence as a sovereign country, after 123 years of rule under the three empires it was partitioned and absorbed by.
[Flyer celebrating Poland's independence day, before 1939, Polona.]
[Flyer celebrating Poland's independence day, before 1939, Polona.]
November 11, 2025 at 11:59 AM
#OTD, in 1918, Poland regained its independence as a sovereign country, after 123 years of rule under the three empires it was partitioned and absorbed by.
[Flyer celebrating Poland's independence day, before 1939, Polona.]
[Flyer celebrating Poland's independence day, before 1939, Polona.]
And there’s already plenty of evidence to back this up.
Be clear, the American far right are coming for British democracy.
November 10, 2025 at 7:39 AM
And there’s already plenty of evidence to back this up.
Was lucky to made it to the museum visit in the Warsaw’s own Queer Muzeum and to listen to the Ukrainian and Polish quests to their own queer identity!
November 9, 2025 at 2:52 PM
Was lucky to made it to the museum visit in the Warsaw’s own Queer Muzeum and to listen to the Ukrainian and Polish quests to their own queer identity!
Me, when one day this damn PhD will be defended:
*(3 days post-finale I can kind of spoil it no?)
*(3 days post-finale I can kind of spoil it no?)
November 8, 2025 at 12:27 PM
Me, when one day this damn PhD will be defended:
*(3 days post-finale I can kind of spoil it no?)
*(3 days post-finale I can kind of spoil it no?)
Dear friends in academia, could you please share your recommendation letters for students trying to apply for their MAs to Oxbridges? I know the form matters much more there than anywhere else, so I wouldn't want to tank my students' chances with the wrong register! DM meee
November 8, 2025 at 11:54 AM
Dear friends in academia, could you please share your recommendation letters for students trying to apply for their MAs to Oxbridges? I know the form matters much more there than anywhere else, so I wouldn't want to tank my students' chances with the wrong register! DM meee
Scholarship for early- to mid-career researchers from the EU enlargement countries (the Western Balkans, Turkey or Eastern neighbourhood) via @epc-official.bsky.social!
Deadline: 4 December.
Deadline: 4 December.
Connecting Europe Fellowship
Bringing candidate country voices to Brussels
www.epc.eu
November 6, 2025 at 9:39 AM
Scholarship for early- to mid-career researchers from the EU enlargement countries (the Western Balkans, Turkey or Eastern neighbourhood) via @epc-official.bsky.social!
Deadline: 4 December.
Deadline: 4 December.
Berlin colleagues in history and/or theatre: who's around next week? Let's meet up!
November 6, 2025 at 9:26 AM
Berlin colleagues in history and/or theatre: who's around next week? Let's meet up!