“People are being bombarded with propaganda against other nations”: How xenophobia in Russia is affecting migrants

 

26.07.2025

 

Article published on the rus.azattyq.org website

 

Anti-migrant sentiments have increased sharply in Russia since the outbreak of the full-scale war in Ukraine. Repressive laws have been passed and hostile rhetoric by officials has intensified. Migrant children are refused entry into schools and mass raids are taking place in migrant neighbourhoods across the country during which people are being forcibly detained.

 

Migration policy experts say this latest upsurge is having an effect on the general mood in Russia. At the same time, they point out that while anti-foreigner feelings have always been present in the country, the trend has become much more visible and aggressive since the start of the war.

 

People who have come to Russia from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine have spoken of their experiences of discrimination due to their ethnicity: from everyday racism and insulting nicknames to constant police checks because of their non-Slavic appearance and the contemptuous attitudes of others.

 

Xenophobic views in Russia are also to be found in official documents, directed not only at migrants but also to those from Russian Republics. For example, last November, the business company, Sistema found out that the Centre for Hygiene and Epidemiology in Moscow had insisted that job descriptions for cleaning staff must include a requirement to speak Russian and that they have a Slavic appearance. And in 2018, in its response to a potential tenderer for installing air conditioners, the capital’s State Budgetary Institution Ritual said that “approval would only be granted to those of Slavic nationality”.

 

It’s a similar story when it comes to security jobs. Special instructions have been posted in several shopping centres in Moscow, Sochi, Novosibirsk and Krasnodar. Security guards must make a “close inspection” of cars if they are driven by “persons of Caucasian or Asian nationalities”, if the vehicle is registered in North Caucasus Republics, or if the driver has any items of clothing traditionally worn by persons of the Islamic faith”.

 

“Silence makes such things “the norm”, which ultimately led to war”.

 

One of our readers, Irina, who is Ukrainian on her father’s side, has often had to deal with the abuse of others because of her family origins. Her mother is from the Belgorod region, but has lived in Kharkiv all her life, which is where she met Irina’s father.

 

“My father came from Western Ukraine, had brown eyes, a swarthy complexion and dark hair. He wore a moustache that was fashionable at the time, a bushy Western moustache”. Irina inherited her father’s dark skin and brown eyes and because of this had to endure hurtful comments as a child when she visited her grandmother in the Russian countryside.

“I wouldn’t say there was outright discrimination but I constantly heard offensive remarks, said in jest but not in the least bit funny. They used to say about my mum in the village – “there goes the wife of a khokhol”, and calling me a “gypsy”, “a little Banderite” and an “anchatka”. It didn’t appear to be said out of malice but it sounded weird”, Irina recalls.

 

Irina also said that such talk wasn’t only directed at her family but about anyone who looked “different”. In the evenings, the old folk would get together and start up by saying “the Government is sh*t”, “they have stolen everything”, “the khokhols are all greedy bastards” and “we should kill all the Banderites”. This all took place in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.

 

After a while, they stopped going to the village, which relieved the constant tension in an instant. But, according to Irina, prejudice towards Ukrainians was also evident among educated people. Once, she found herself in the company of some St Petersburg artists – she herself is an artist by training. It turned out they thought Ukraine was a “nest of Banderites”.

 

“I was surprised that Ukraine seemed so incomprehensible and remote to them. They talked about their “grandfathers’ exploits” and how Russia would one day destroy our country. And suddenly, with their interest piqued, they asked “And where do you come from?”, “Not Russia?” Although not offensive, it was said in a very pointed way”. She never spoke to the artists again.

 

“I don’t want my words to be taken as accusatory or bitter in any way – they just reflect my personal experiences. Not only in the Russian countryside but even in big cities, people are constantly being subjected to propaganda against other nations, religions and cultures. Why is there so much hostility? After all, many of these people have never met “those” Americans, Chinese or Ukrainians but they always use a derogatory word to describe them. I share my story not to condemn but because silence makes such things “the norm”, which ultimately led to war”, she says.

 

The war and the rise of xenophobia

 

Olga Abramenko, an expert working at the Anti-Discrimination Centre Memorial, says that the growth of xenophobia in Russia today is a direct consequence of the war and the pervading political climate.

 

“The war itself became possible and was unleashed by the Putin regime against a backdrop of years of intense State propaganda, celebrating the greatness of the Russian people, its exclusivity and proclaiming the nation’s destiny”, says Abramenko.

 

The narrative, she says, needs constant reinforcing, which is where the xenophobic rhetoric comes in. High-ranking officials, from the head of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, to the Speaker of the State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, regularly speak out about migrants, which has been followed by the introduction of targeted measures such as anti-immigrant laws, raids and deportations.

 

Last summer, the authorities expanded the powers of the police, allowing them to expel migrants without due legal process. In addition, a list of people to be monitored, i.e. a database of migrants whose papers had expired, was created. Since February this year, hundreds of people who are in the country legally have been locked in the system without access to their bank accounts due to technical failures.

 

New regulations have also affected the children of migrants. In order to gain school admission, a child must first demonstrate a knowledge of the Russian language. This requirement may seem innocent enough but in practice it merely reconfirms the systemic refusal to admit Central Asian children into schools.

 

Many are not even given the chance to take the test, with only 19% of them allowed to do so in May. The remaining 81% who applied were denied the opportunity on the pretext of an incomplete set of documentation, inaccurate data or a lack of available school places.

 

Local authorities have officially barred migrants from working in the economic, education, transport, culture and leisure sectors at the same time as sweeping enforcement raids are taking place. Migrants are threatened with deportation unless they agree to sign a contract with the Russian army to fight in Ukraine.

 

Although, according to Abramenko, xenophobia has always been prevalent in Russia, there has been a new surge in anti-foreigner sentiments in recent times. “We are aware of its growth among the general public, which has been recorded by experts at the SOVA Centre for Information and Analysis. Their annual reports show that in terms of numbers, we have gone back to the 2010s when hate crimes were at their peak. But then there was a lull in protest activity, including by radical right-wing groups. In fact, there was a drop in offences after that”.

 

According to the SOVA Centre, 145 hate crimes have already been recorded this year alone, three of which were fatal.

 

Human Rights Watch has also spoken about the rise of xenophobia in the country, linking the latest spiral to the terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall on 22 March last year, which has intensified the pressure on people from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

 

Polls are showing a similar trend. According to the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Centre, in April last year, 55%-60% of Russians had a negative view of migrant workers, with only 30% positive. In August 2023, 40% were negative and 47% positive.

 

According to a Human Rights Watch report, migrants are being subjected to “ethnic profiling”, arbitrary detention and other forms of harassment by police officers and private individuals, including far-right nationalist groups.

 

One of these groups is the so-called Russian Community, which has been actively participating in anti-migrant raids. According to Olga Abramenko, its members work in support of law enforcement agencies and the State’s special militia unit. The media have reported that the

Russian Community sometimes detains people of non-Slavic appearance on their own initiative.

 

Meduza journalists have discovered that the group only operates with the knowledge and protection of the security services, with sources close to the FSB confirming that the Russian Community are carrying out tasks agreed by the Bureau.

 

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a regional official explained it this way “Migrants and the North Caucasus – there’s always been a lot of tension around this issue. Law enforcement agencies are often reluctant to get involved in such matters as they would have to initiate legal proceedings and issue lawsuits. Some tough guys would then come along and say “You’re wrong, we don’t behave like that, apologise!”, and that would be the end of it”.

 

Abramenko says that the Russian Community and similar groups are not spontaneous units but operate as part of an organised structure, with an ideology and State support.

 

“Xenophobia comes directly from the very top. Alexander Bastrykin, Vladimir Kolokoltsev and Pyotr Tolstoy have all made dreadful comments about migrants and ethnic minorities. These words are perceived from below as an excuse to carry out certain tasks, including particularly violent ones, which have resulted in a number of deaths at the hands of the Russian Community”.

 

Source: https://rus.azattyq.org/a/kak-ksenofobiya-v-rossii-otrazhaetsya-na-migrantah/33483706.html