EVEN BEFORE WAR, THOUSANDS WERE FLEEING RUSSIA FOR THE U.S.
Post by Yicheng Ruan. Colgate Class of 2023.
Source: Jordan, M., & Sullivan, E. (2022, March 11). Even Before War, Thousands Were Fleeing Russia for the U.S.. New York Times.
The Russia-Ukraine war has caused numerous Russians to pour out of their home country in response to severe economic sanctions from the international community. Despite the war amplifying the exodus from Russia, many Russians were leaving the country before the outbreak of the war and have sought asylum in the United States to escape persecution in Russia.
In the 2021 fiscal year, 4,100 undocumented Russians crossed the United States southern border, a 900% increase from 2020. These undocumented immigrants include many people that are part of minority groups facing persecution by the Putin administration in Russia; most immigrants are members of the LGBTQ+ community or feel ostracized for their affiliations to religious or political minority groups that are not accepted in Russia. Russians have been forced to enter the United States illegally through Mexico since the visa application process has been made more difficult with increased tensions between the two superpowers and COVID-related shutdowns of U.S. embassies throughout Eastern Europe. Since many immigrants have journeyed to the United States recently, the role of the Russian network has worked to benefit prospective immigrants in their journey to enter the United States. Telegram, an encrypted messaging app, has served a critical role in allowing the sharing of valuable information, including tips on how to gain entry and updating immigrants on policy changes, among Russians that seek to enter the United States. This has helped those potential immigrants to make flexible plans for their next moves. Additionally, with the enhanced network as a pull factor, more Russian asylum seekers may choose the United States as their destination country in the future, further increasing the number of Russians present in the country.
10 thoughts on “EVEN BEFORE WAR, THOUSANDS WERE FLEEING RUSSIA FOR THE U.S.”
This was an interesting article to read since I was unaware of the influx of Russian immigrants coming to the United States before the war started. You make a good point about the increased difficulties that are in place for Russian immigrants versus others because of the tension between these two superpowers. I wonder what kind of discrimination Russian immigrants have faced in the United States and how it has affected their stay: maybe it has been more difficult to find housing, jobs, a sense of community, etc. It will be interesting to see how the outcomes of war further impact Russian immigrants here in the United States. Great article!
I was not aware that there were so many Russian immigrants coming to the U.S. even before the war started until I read this amazing article. Since the war must have made it harder for the persecuted minorities in Russia to travel to the U.S., I am glad to know that there are local networks and organizations to help. This is a nice and inspiring article. Great work!
This is a very insightful article as I had no idea that there were so many Russian immigrants entering the US. Since the government allows refugee status on the grounds of government persecution, I am curious if the US would ever recognize and accept these immigrants. Since there has been tension with Russia since the Cold War, I am sure that many Russian immigrants have faced discrimination here in the US. I wonder if this discrimination continues today and if ICE officials are more likely to detain and deport undocumented Russian immigrants, especially with the current crisis going on in Ukraine.
Although we discussed the importance of networks in class. It is crazy to see how it plays out in the real world and how large an effect something like a texting app as on the level of immigrants from a certain country. I also was unaware of the levels of Russian immigrants that were entering the US before the war. Great article!
This is a fascinating article. I did not realize there were already a lot of Russians immigrating to the U.S. before the conflict with Ukraine started. The connection to class topics we have learned about, such as pull factors, was a very excellent thought. I agree that an increase in the number of Russian immigrants to the U.S. will increase their network; however, I would argue that the pull factor of having more Russians in the U.S. is less of a reason for immigrating than the push factor of escaping Putin and the persecution that many Russian citizens face.
This was a very insightful article. With the war and with a new wave of Russian tech workers fleeing the country due to sanctions, it would be interesting to see how many of them end up in the US and how that will impact the existing network of Russian immigrants in the US.
This was a really interesting post. I also did not realize how many Russians were migrating to the US, even before the war. However, it is important to consider that that 900% increase from 2020 and 2021 is also a result of a lack of immigrants coming into the country because of Covid and border restrictions. I would think that number wouldn’t be as significant if it wasn’t for Covid. I thought it was cool to read about this article, as it connected to one of the articles I had read. My article was actually discussing how after the Russian attacks, many Russians were having trouble getting into the US at the US-Mexico border, whereas many Ukrainian refugees were getting in fairly easily in comparison. A lot of those Russian immigrants were getting stuck in Mexico at the border. It’s interesting to think about how what is going on overseas might be impacting Russian immigrants chances to get into the US.
We see so much of Ukrainian immigrants fleeing their country that we haven’t given as much thought to Russian citizens who are fleeing persecution from their government. The encrypted”Telegram” messaging app is very interesting, because it feels that the ways in which immigrants are able to communicate with one another regarding crossing borders is generally unknown, and I think it’s definitely beneficial to aiding immigrants in their journey to another country. On the other hand, it would be interesting to consider how the information passed through Telegram assists in illegal border crossings. Regardless, this enhanced network will certainly be beneficial in providing transparency to all immigrants who would like to enter the U.S.
Your blog post helps depict just how serious and ongoing this conflict has been in Russia. Due to the serve economic sanctions on Russia, there has been minimal access to interest and banking services. Companies have been struggling to pay their employees as a result, leading to an outflow of workers from Russia. This crisis is a concept termed “brain drain.” Many of Russia’s high-skilled workers have been fleeing the country and seeking asylum in the United States, which could have massive economic impacts for Russia in the long-run.
I agree with Emma here – the long term impacts on Russia of the brain drain could be very costly to them.