1st Place NPPA Best of Photojournalism Magazine Picture Story

Ukraine's Lost Generation


The difficult shift to a free-market economy has led to a rise in homeless children in many former communist countries. In Ukraine in the early 2000s, an alarming number of children were abandoned or forced onto the streets. Official estimates vary widely from 30,000 to 300,000, with some experts suggesting the true figure is even higher. These vulnerable children often endure sexual violence, drug abuse, malnutrition, police abuse, and harassment. They also engage in risky sexual activity, face forced sex and unintended pregnancies, and are susceptible to various infections, including HIV, STDs, and hepatitis.



00000246-Kids-001.jpg.For over three years, 9-year-old Artyom has called this Kyiv sewer home, never having the chance to attend school. His brother, bearing emotional and physical scars, is unwilling to return to their abusive, alcoholic father. To cope with persistent hunger, Artyom, much like other children in similar circumstances, huffs glue—a desperate attempt to kill their appetite and momentarily forget the grim reality of street life.

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Suffering from morning sickness, Natasha Dzhuley, 16, wakes up after a night of prostitution. Though pregnant, a nervous Natasha claims that her abortion worked. Fearful of her pimps’ reaction to her pregnancy she drank several bottles of red wine and took a ‘very hot bath in which she bled.’ Natasha, like other girls work out of a mafiacontrolled flat where they are given clean clothes and instructed to bathe regularly.-

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Inhaling glue serves a tragic purpose for most of these children, not only numbing the emotional pain of their sad lives but also suppressing their hunger. They often inhale "in the box," a practice where the rancid fumes are trapped longer, thereby minimizing the amount of glue required and extending the duration of their high.


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Denise Selivanov, 13, inhales glue while his younger brother Artyom Selivanov, 9, watches. After suffering years of abuse at the hands of their alcoholic father, Denise made the decision that life on the streets would be far easier than the misery they experienced at home.

00000246-Kids-005.jpg.Ukraine's Lost Generation.Emotionally scarred and believing herself to be 13, Ruslana lives in constant fear of forced prostitution, seeking protection from older boys like 21-year-old Sasha against street pimps. Although there are no firm estimates for the number of street children, last year alone, over 120,000 young Ukrainian women were trafficked into sex slavery. This alarming figure means Ukraine has surpassed Latin America as the world's leading source of trafficked women.

00000246-Kids-006.jpg.Ukraine's Lost Generation.Sasha, 16, momentarily breaks the monotony of his life to enjoy a "borrowed" scooter. However, the consequences for stealing are severe and unpredictable, ranging from beatings and arrests to the sewers—where many of these children live—being set on fire and made unsuitable for habitation.
Passing the glue

A train underpass provides some shelter from the elements as the boys play cards and kill their hunger by huffing glue.

The effects of the glueThe glue takes its effect as Denise stumbles around in the near-pitch darkness of where he is sleeping for the night.


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Suffering from a broken nose and bruised ribs Natasha whimpers in pain from the beatings she received from her pimp's men. Ruslana believes her beatings were a warning to other prostitutes to stay in line. Several days later the children watched helplessly as Natasha was dragged away by six men. Her boyfriend has not seen or heard from her since.

00000246-Kids-008.jpg.Ukraine's Lost Generation.While the other children sleep, 13-year-old Ruslana gathers hidden bottles to exchange for cash. Originally from the Carpathians, she and her two siblings were abandoned at a Kyiv rail station three years ago during their family's move to Russia. The children are secretly saving money, hoping to travel to Russia and find their sister.

A final look back


For the children depicted in this series, the chances of escaping their dire circumstances are tragically slim. Several, including Sasha and Ruslan, are no longer alive. The relentless toll of glue inhalation not only ravaged their lungs and internal organs but also led to severe mental health issues, overdoses, and ultimately, death. Natasha, seen earlier in this series, had a baby boy and was last known to be living near her original location, supporting her son and new boyfriend through continued prostitution. The fate of many other children remains unknown.



A year after this series was concluded and published internationally, documentary cinematographer Shira Pinson revisited the surviving children, documenting their ongoing struggles in her 2005 film, Flowers Don't Grow Here.


You can view the trailer of this documentary here.



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