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Christmas unites generations and families around a festive table and carols, while Malanka brings together entire villages in a street carnival with masks and fancy costumes to celebrate the arrival of the new year. Both holidays have deep roots for Ukrainians, which the Soviet repressive machine tried to destroy for decades. We heard about bans on celebrations, harassment and persecution of carolers and malanka players in villages in Poltava, Kharkiv, Lviv and Vashkivtsi. Despite these bans, many traditions have survived. Thanks to those who hid Malanka masks in their chests in time, protected the groups from persecution, recorded ancient carols, and gathered carolers in their kitchens despite the risks of arrest and search. The tradition has not been interrupted, it is being studied and revived. This is how Ukrainians have always won the fight for their own identity. They are winning now.