Jewish actress Mila Kunis was born in what is now Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and came to the country as a child with her family of refugees from the former Soviet Union.
“My parents went through hell and back,” the mother-of-two shared in 2016. “They came to America with suitcases and a family of seven and $250, and that was it.”
Like many Jewish-American refugees from the USSR, the ‘That ’70s Show’ star feels a renewed connection to the country of his childhood after witnessing the atrocities unfold on the ground as Russia invades Ukraine, targeting civilians and military. Now she and her husband, Ashton Kutcher, are using their massive platform to raise money for humanitarian aid efforts for Ukrainian refugees.
“I have always considered myself an American, a proud American. I love everything this country has done for me and my family, but today I have never been so proud to be Ukrainian,” said Kunis in a video announcing their fundraiser on Instagram.
Kutcher added that he had “never been so proud to be married to a Ukrainian”.
“The events that have unfolded in Ukraine are devastating. There is no place in this world for this kind of unjust attack on humanity,” Kunis continued. “Ashton and I have decided to match up to $3 million in donations to Airbnb.org and flexport.org, through GoFundMe.org, with the goal of raising $30 million.”
“Flexport will transport much-needed humanitarian aid directly to known NGOs on the ground who can guarantee that this aid will be received by the parties most needed,” Kutcher explained, adding later that the organization “will organize shipments of supplies of relief to refugee sites in Poland, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Moldova.
“And Airbnb will support housing and living costs for those hosting refugees,” Kunis added.
“The Ukrainian people are strong and brave, but being strong and brave doesn’t mean you don’t deserve support. We must support the Ukrainian people. Please help us,” Kunis pleaded to the couple’s fans and followers at the end of the video.
“Let’s support them with whatever we can,” Kutcher urged.
The couple have already raised over $3 million in less than 24 hours.
Kunis is not the only Ukrainian Jewish celebrity raising awareness and funding the crisis in the European country.
Maksim Chmerkovskiy, pro of “Dancing with the stars”, father of one and the son of a Jewish fatherwas on the ground in Ukraine before fleeing the country on Wednesday.
He reported live missives on social media from his beleaguered home country, sharing with his viewers the human toll and the terror inflicted by the Russian attack.
“It was not me who was trying to publicize the situation. It was me trying to call for help. I was just screaming, ‘Look, that’s what I just saw. I just want you to see it, whoever you are,” Chmerkovskiy noted.
Since his escape from Kiev, Chmerkovskiy has shared different fundraising campaigns, including those of Kunis and Kutcher. In a video from Warsaw airport, he also asked not to blame Russians as individuals: “I don’t want there to be hatred…they are our brothers and sisters”, said he said, speaking of his mother’s family in Russia.
Then, of course, there is President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. As Jordana Horn wrote this week, “I am glad that for the moment the people of the world agree to admire the integrity, strength and courage of a Jew.”
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