Kosovo Project
History Of Kosovo/What is Happening
Kosovo is a province of the country of Serbia, bordered by Albania, North Macedonia, and Montenegro. In recent years numbers have shown a great decline in the Serbian population and a rise to ethnic Albanians. Serbian people have been present in the region what is know today as Kosovo from the 6th and 7th centuries. After this, Stefan Nemanja was able to take partial control of Kosovo for the Serbian people. His successor, Stefan Prvovencani, was than left to acquire the remaining parts of Kosovo. Kosovo officially became part of the Serbian Empire in the 12th and 13th centuries. However, when the Ottoman Empire took over Serbia, the condition of Kosovo became unsteady. While lead by the Ottomans, Serbians and Albanians in Kosovo were being forced to change from Orthodox Christianity to Islam. Because of this, the population of Serbian people declined as they fled more inland to the country of Serbia. At that same time, Albanians came from the Northern region of Albania and immigrated to Kosovo. As they moved into Ottoman territory for better life, the vast majority of these Albanian people converted to Islam. This created a religious barrier between the Serbians and Albanians in later times. Many switches to the leadership of Kosovo took place until about 1912 when Serbians started the liberation from the Ottoman Empire. The Albanian people in these unsteady times began to want more power in Kosovo. In 1946, at an end of long stretching conflict, Kosovo was assigned to Serbia and became its province in 1963. This inflicted Kosovo with more conflict as the Albanian people were not happy with this decision. Organizations that turned into government groups formed in Kosovo to take down the Serbian people. Continued actions against Kosovo were the attacks by Albanians on Serbians, the denial to vote, the creation of their own, unauthorized government, and plenty more. Today we see continued events such as these, with the most recent actions against Serbians as a sanction on goods for its people. Because conflict and prejudice is still unjustifiably occurring in Kosovo, the Kosovo Project was started to spread awareness, as well as provide funds for the Serbian people left in need. Beautiful churches and monasteries are bombed, burned, and vandalized in many ways by Albanian forces and gangs. As this problem has gone unnoticed and ignored, the Serbian people are starving and losing numbers to fight back. Any donation will help to bring food, water, and other material goods to the Serbian men, women, and children of Kosovo. Without us, the Albanian people will continue to take lives, inflict poverty, and eventually gain full control of a land that is not their own. With you, we can bring the goods, but also the hope, that the Serbian people of Kosovo need. Please go to "How To Help" above to make your donation to this worthy cause. Thank you!
More About the Project
The Kosovo Project was started in 2019 to help the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija. In response to the urgency of their situation, we aim to provide help by fundraising and making a pilgrimage to the province in the summer of 2020. The idea was sparked by Anastasija Gligorevic, the president of Serbian Orthodox Teachers and Youth Association (SOTAYA), a youth organization at the Saint Nicholas Serbian Orthodox Church in Oberlin Steelton. Our success comes from the overwhelming acceptance of the church and passionate donors of time, money, and resources. Through your help, we hope to send 100% of the profits made by the project to Kosovo and distribute it among the people in need. Moreover, once there, we aim to assist children's orphanages and hospitals in order to make connections with the less fortunate youth of the province. In the end, the project hopes to both see a positive shift for the Serbian people of Kosovo and spread awareness of the conflict and crimes occurring.
