Popular science material by Oleksandr Rakhmanov, Doctor of Sociological Sciences: “The life of Ukrainian migrants in Europe: a sociologist's observations”

The website of the Institute of Sociology of the NAS of Ukraine has published a popular science material by Oleksandr Rakhmanov, Doctor of Sociological Sciences, "The life of Ukrainian migrants in Europe: a sociologist's observations".

The millions of Ukrainian citizens who because of the Russian-Ukrainian war were forced to seek refuge in the countries of Europe have been given the possibility of simplified integration and rights largely comparable to those of local residents in matters of housing, work, health care and leisure. Most such people have taken advantage of the unique “open doors” situation, including the opportunities in European labour markets. In all, according to UNHCR statistics as of February 2024, some 6.5 million refugees from Ukraine are officially recorded worldwide.

For statistical purposes UNHCR uses the term “refugees” in a general sense, meaning everyone who has left Ukraine because of the war. What lies behind the statistical indicators of Ukrainian international migration? What difficulties do our refugees face? What is the social portrait of Ukrainian migrants? How do the older and newer waves of displaced people interact? What can be said about the European prospects of Ukrainians abroad? It is on these questions that I want to focus in this material. In answering them I shall draw on the data of participant observation, since I am myself one of the Ukrainian migrants in Europe and have been through all the stages of integrating into a social reality new to me. All this made it possible to study the migration process, so to speak, from the inside.

The full material is here