A Discourse Analysis of Indian International Students’ Agency and Liminality During the Russian-Ukrainian Conflict

• In Event: Immigration and Cross-Cultural Adaptation

Abstract

Little is known about how international students, especially in non-Anglocentric, peripheralized European countries, negotiate power and navigate crises during war. This social media discourse analysis illuminates the narratives of Indian international students in Ukraine affected by the Russo-Ukrainian war. We used agency and liminality as analytic lenses to highlight how this uniquely situated population utilized Facebook to navigate conflict, voice demands, support each other, and re-orient their futures. We found that Indian international students in Ukraine displayed insurmountable courage and resilience during the war, enacting agency from the margins to amplify their voices and actuate desired futures. South Asian international students in Ukraine put aside their religious, ethnic, national, and caste conflicts to come together as a collective, centering humanity.

Authors

• Bhavika Sicka, Old Dominion University

• Dennis Edward Gregory, Old Dominion University

• Nadiya de Ungo, Old Dominion University