Broken Biographies of Russian Migrant Women in Poland After Russia's Aggression Against Ukraine

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7494/human.2025.24.1.6988

Keywords:

lived experience, broken biographies, Russian migrant women in Poland, enemy figure, trajectory, rupture

Abstract

Russia's aggression against Ukraine in February 2022 had a profound impact not only on the direct victims of the conflict but also on the lives of Russians abroad. In Poland, where social and political relations with Russia were already tense, migrant women from Russia found themselves in a particularly difficult situation. Our qualitative research conducted as part of the GEN-MIGRA project ‘Gender, mobility and migration during and after the COVID-19 pandemic - marginalisation, resistance and strategies for the future’ shows that Russian women who arrived in Poland before the outbreak of the war have on the one hand experienced the negative effects of the war in their family, professional and social relationships, and on the other hand, they have been facing increasing discrimination and rejection, both from the majority of Polish society and institutions, primarily in the form of refusing to extend their residence permits. The presentation of the situation of women forces us to reflect on the effects of the war, the interrupted life course project, unforeseen suffering and normative chaos.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Published

2025-06-30

How to Cite

Szpakowicz, D., & Slany, K. (2025). Broken Biographies of Russian Migrant Women in Poland After Russia’s Aggression Against Ukraine. Studia Humanistyczne AGH, 24(1), 37-54. https://doi.org/10.7494/human.2025.24.1.6988