Safety, Shame, and Ambiguity — the Case of Ukrainian Male Refugees

Abstract

Forced migration from Ukraine is characterized by its distinctive demographic character: women, children, and the elderly. This distinctiveness is due to the sex-selective military recruiting law forcing Ukrainian men to stay in the country. Despite this law, anecdotal reports about Ukrainian men fleeing into neighboring countries have surfaced. As such, Ukrainian male refugees are a salient minority. In this article, I reflect on how this salient minority status affects Ukrainian male refugees. The sex-selective military recruiting law sends a potential message: Ukrainian men are not only legally supposed to stay in Ukraine, but strong normative forces are also at play. In short, stigma and shame are potential feelings that penetrate these men's day-to-day lives. I suggest that researchers approach the subject matter using two theoretical streams: (a) a gendered lens and (b) a theoretical framework of “promising victimhood” with notions of “undeserving” versus “deserving” refugees. I encourage researchers to do so while considering the sensitive situation in which Ukrainian male refugees find themselves.