Contributing Writers

Russian military activity near Ukraine’s nuclear sites have raised alarm, as triggering any of the volatile reactors around the country could cause nuclear catastrophe for the entire European continent. Russian troops have seized the site of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster and have reportedly taken staff hostage, raising fear that any disturbance could rerelease deadly radiation that has been sealed off for years.

The Nation’s Katrina vanden Heuvel, who has reported on Russia for decades, says many observers were “shocked” that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine, calling it an “indefensible” decision. President Biden ordered strong sanctions on Russia in response, but he has also heeded critics’ warnings not to send troops to Ukraine in order to avoid a world war.

As officials in Moscow threaten to replace the democratically elected Ukrainian government and Russian forces appear set to overpower Ukrainian defenses, is this the end of an independent Ukraine? We speak with Ukrainian peace activist Nina Potarska, who fled the country after Russian troops entered Ukraine on Thursday, even as her 11-year-old daughter with COVID-19 had to stay behind.

As the Russian army advances on Kyiv and threatens to topple the Ukrainian government, Ukrainian officials have banned men ages 18 to 60 from leaving the country to potentially be drafted into defense forces and have directed residents to use Molotov cocktails against the approaching Russian troops. We get an update from Ukrainian journalist Nataliya Gumenyuk in Kyiv, who says Ukrainians are showing great resilience against a much greater force invading their country.

The Debt Collective is planning an action on April 4 at the Department of Education to urge the Biden administration to fulfill a campaign promise to cancel student debt before federal student loan payments restart in May. Debt cancellation would give relief to some 45 million borrowers who owe nearly $1.8 trillion in student debt. Education should be treated as a human right and not as a commodity, says Astra Taylor, co-director of the Debt Collective.

What does the Russian invasion of Ukraine mean for the rest of Europe? We speak with Yanis Varoufakis, former Greek finance minister, about the failure of international bodies like the European Union and United Nations in preventing war. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres implored Russia to withdraw all troops in a speech immediately following Thursday’s attack, and the U.S. and allies are moving swiftly to impose sanctions as retaliation against the aggression.

We speak about the looming humanitarian crisis in Ukraine with Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, who recently met with civilians on the frontlines in eastern Ukraine and urges world leaders to consider the human cost of war and work toward a ceasefire and diplomatic solution. “A cruel military onslaught is engulfing millions,” says Egeland. “It will lead to untold suffering in Ukraine but also refugee flows in the region.

Russia has launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, prompting condemnation and the threat of new sanctions from the U.S. and allies. Russian President Vladimir Putin referred to the move early Thursday morning in Moscow as a “special military operation,” coming just days after Putin recognized two breakaway regions of eastern Ukraine as independent states.

We remember the life and legacy of Dr. Paul Farmer, a public health icon who spent decades building community health networks helping millions of poor people in Haiti, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and beyond. He died unexpectedly Monday at the age of 62. We feature Farmer’s past interviews with Democracy Now! and speak with his longtime colleague, Dr. Joia Mukherjee.

The Debt Collective is planning an action on April 4 at the Department of Education to urge the Biden administration to fulfill a campaign promise to cancel student debt before federal student loan payments restart in May. Debt cancellation would give relief to some 45 million borrowers who owe nearly $1.8 trillion in student debt. Education should be treated as a human right and not as a commodity, says Astra Taylor, co-director of the Debt Collective.

We go to Georgia, where a jury has found the three white men who hunted and fatally shot unarmed Black jogger Ahmaud Arbery guilty of committing federal hate crimes, acknowledging the racial animus behind the killing. It marks the first time in Georgia’s history that there has been a conviction for a federal hate crime. Today is the anniversary of Arbery’s murder, now marked as Ahmaud Arbery Day in Georgia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to order troops into the separatist-controlled areas of Ukraine has triggered a new wave of sanctions against Russia, amid fears the situation could spiral into an all-out war. We speak with Dr. Ira Helfand, former president of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, who warns a war could lead to the use of nuclear weapons that would annihilate millions and cause total collapse of world ecosystems.

On the anniversary of the assassination of Malcolm X, we speak with the civil rights leader’s daughter Ilyasah Shabazz about her family’s call for a federal probe into his murder, following the exoneration of two men who were wrongfully convicted. “We want to know who killed our father, and we want to make sure that it is properly recorded in history,” says Shabazz.

Former Minneapolis police officer Kim Potter was sentenced to two years in prison on Friday for fatally shooting Black driver Daunte Wright after mistaking her gun for a Taser. We speak to Benjamin Crump, attorney for the Wright family, about Judge Regina Chu’s sympathy expressed for Potter during closing statements and how white criminals tend to receive lighter sentences. “Police officers, when it comes to Black people, they always do the most,” says Crump.