Anti-Migrant Moves Transforming Patriotism into Russian Nationalism, ‘Nezavisimaya Gazeta’ Warns

Paul Goble

            Staunton, July 18 – Official moves against migrant workers have increased to the point that it is transforming Russian patriotism, that is loyalty to the country and its state, into Russian nationalism, a very different basis for loyalty and a threat to stability in a multi-national country, the editors of Nezavisimaya Gazeta say in a lead article.

            Increasingly attacks on migrant workers are running up against the fact that migrants have taken Russian citizenship and that those who are opposed to immigration do not make a clear distinction as the Constitution requires between citizens and non-citizens but between those “ours” and those who aren’t (ng.ru/editorial/2024-07-18/2_9052_red.html).

            Attacks on immigrants create problems “even in monoethnic states,” but they are “even more dangerous for countries like Russia where any ‘nationality-based’ initiative threatens to penetrate more deeply, violate the delicate balance and introduce dangerous divisions” within society by replacing patriotism with nationalism.

            “’Patriotism’ is a form which everyone defines in his or her own way,” the editors say; but “for many people nationalism is a more accustomed, understandable and accessible thing. This is a division of ‘ours’ and ‘not ours. To start thee search for ‘the not ours’ is very simple; to stop it is far more complicated and often leads to divisions among citizens with the same rights.”