The 1990 Revolution on Granite: Lessons from the First Maidan
The 1990 Revolution on Granite: Lessons from the First Maidan

Summary/Abstract: This article analyses the Ukrainian Revolution on Granite from two perspectives-on one hand as a starting point for Ukraine’s independence aspirations, and on the other as a prototype for subsequent Ukrainian revolutions. This Revolution constitutes an example of an event whose significance was discovered many years later. Although it was partially successful, and more importantly it should be treated as one of the milestones on the road to Ukraine’s independence, until the second decade of the twentyfirst century it was assigned marginal significance and almost ignored as a research subject. This article searches for the basic factors of the Revolution’s success, based on the methodology provided by civil resistance theory and thus concentrating on its internal factors, especially on its objectives, strategy, and methods of struggle. One of the main purposes is to analyze the sources of experiences from which the leaders of the protests drew. The Revolution on Granite is also presented as the inaugural event of a new chapter in the tradition of protests in Ukraine by introducing new elements. Although later protests, especially the Orange Revolution (2003) and the Euromaidan (2013–2014), received inspiration from many symbols and experiences of other countries, the thread of the Ukrainian tradition became permanent, even though it was subject to changes.

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