Russia and Refugees: A 20th Century History

press release: Co-sponsored by the Center for German and European Studies, the Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia, and the Mortenson-Petrovich Fund in the Department of History at the University of Wisconsin – Madison.

In this lecture, Dr. Gatrell will make three claims. First, the modern history of Russia has been indelibly associated with mass population displacement: Russia produced refugees. Second, Russia was indirectly implicated in the constitution of what has come to be called the refugee regime, including the durable solutions of resettlement and repatriation. In this context, Russia also intermittently provided sanctuary: in other words, there is a history of Russia as a refugee-hosting state. Third, we need to pay proper account to what refugees had to say and how they negotiated numerous constraints. Dr. Gatrell concludes that these findings also speak to the larger field of refugee studies.

This event will be held at the Pyle Center, Room 121.