How do Kyrgyz migrant women reflect on their everyday experiences in Russia?

The first decades after the dissolution of the Soviet ‘friendship of the peoples’ façade witnessed intensified racial discrimination and violence against the non-Slavic population of Russia. The position of labor migrants from Central Asia in Russia has been studied as frequently characterized by marginalization and inequality. However, less is known about the migrants’ daily experiences of ‘race’ and its intersections with gender in the Russian context. My project centers on the everyday experiences of transmigrant women between Kyrgyzstan and Russia. I will trace racial and gendered discrimination and participants’ everyday resistance to complex social inequalities. Ultimately, I seek to understand how the lived experience of Kyrgyz migrant women in Russia can inform our thinking about race, ethnicity, and citizenship. Presenting the overview of my project proposal, I will introduce the historical and theoretical context of researching the racialization of migrants in Russia, discuss my research question, and deliberate on my positionality as well as appropriate methodology.
 

Bio: I am a first-year PhD student in Politics and Sociology at SSEES funded by LAHP. Prior to that, I graduated in International Security (cum laude) from Sciences Po (Paris) and in International Relations (first-class honours) from LSE and HSE. My research interests include race and racism studies, gender studies, migration, and citizenship.

Image credit: Mahabat Alymkulova, USAID on Pixnio