“Real Refugees” - On the construction of Ukrainian refugees in Germany

• In Event: Criminology of Mobility. Panel 3. Refugees and social control

Abstract

The Ukrainian refugee movement of 2022 received overwhelming empathy and support in Germany. While "irregular migration" from other countries continued to be met with increasing restrictiveness and criminalization, the urgency to support Ukrainian refugees remained indisputable. This PhD project delves into media narratives surrounding Ukrainian refugees within popular print media in Germany. The analysis aims to explore how refugees from other nationalities are being pitted against Ukrainian refugees in the media. In this context, the media’s role in shaping the image of deserving and legitimate refugees is examined. The paper seeks to identify racialized and gendered perceptions of migrants in print media from February 2022 to February 2023 and discuss how an understanding of “realness” is being constructed. In a second phase, interviews with social workers and political actors were conducted to explore whether these media narratives are reflected in practice. The paper discusses how e.g. social workers perceive these differentiations in their daily work and examines whether their experiences are influenced by public discourse.

Author

• Ann-Sophie Maluck, Graduate School Universität Hamburg