Authors

Discussion

This paper explores the refugee experience in Poland in 1939, during the violent collapse of the state following the coordinated invasions by Germany and the Soviet Union. It examines a period of "weak governance," when refugees were stripped of aid, protection, and citizenship, all while facing the violence of war and the social chaos of a temporarily stateless environment.

The paper's key insight lies in analyzing both the challenges and opportunities presented by the refugee condition in contexts of state disintegration. It approaches statelessness from two perspectives: as a territorial condition defined by the absence of state authority and as a personal condition marked by the loss of citizenship rights. By focusing on the intersection of wartime migration and refugee agency with the oft-overlooked reception areas in Eastern Europe, this dual framework aims to enhance our understanding of refugee experiences within the context of state disintegration more broadly.