"Not quite Russian but not Danish either"
In 2014 a group of Russian–Swedish parents felt so troubled by the Swedish media coverage of Russian issues that they decided to write a frustrated letter in the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.
According to the parents, their children developed self-esteem problems and feared revealing their Russian roots, due to the negative media coverage.
Danish media-experts suggest a similar tendency in the Danish press. One of them goes as far as saying that "Danish media imply a new Cold War".
Two Russian–Danes are caught in the middle of this very issue. Eugen Shapiro and Tatiana Anfimova know from their own experience how prejudice and judgement based on nationality really feels.
Worried Russians living in Sweden describe discrimination that causes insecurity among their children. Now it seems that Denmark also has frustrated Russian-Danes living in a pressure for fitting in.
By Amanda Åsberg, Diana Bologova , Oona Lohilahti and Peter Martin Kappel.
"I wish Danes would discuss my roots and Russian politics more freely with me, because often it feels like they`re afraid I`d get angry." - Eugen Shapiro
"I feel like going home to Russia, because to most Danes I am nothing but a stereotypical Russian." - Tatiana Anfimova
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Anfimova has experienced how the negative way of telling about Russia affects the Russians living in the Nordic countries. Se moved from Moscow to Copenhagen five years ago but even though she has a succesful career she now considers moving back to Russia. The reason is what she explanes as a Danish hatred towards Russians. Anfimova blames the media for this attitude.
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- I don't like when people just accuse you without a reason because all they know about your home country is a bunch of negative stories from the western media, Anfimova says.
When the Russian-speaking parents sent a worried letter to Swedish media they told about their children's fear telling what their background is because of all the negative publicity.
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The possible shame of being Russian comes from much earlier events than the Ukraine war and annexation of Crimea, says Tapani Kaakkuriniemi, head of education at the Finnish Aleksanteri Institute. He explains that in general Russians feel ashamed due to the economic downturns of the 1990s and the beginning of the 21st century when the Russian society collapsed.
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In reality this means that Russians in the Nordic countries often live in their own, tight-knit communities in which they are active but isolated from the whole society.
Russians are constantly asked many stereotypical questions. The usual one, "what do you think about Vladimir Putin", doesn’t make young Russians excited. They are not bothered much about their home country’s politics and try to avoid questions about their president.
- All the media attention is making them feel quite awkward. Most Russians living in the Nordics don’t support the super power state politics of Putin, which is why they don’t go shouting around about their roots.
In Finland, Denmark, Sweden and Norway the young Russians might even attempt to fade out their origin.
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Danish researches have noticed the same phenomenon that Anfimova has been dealing with in her life.
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According to him, this creates a border between Russia and the Western world.
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Listen to what Lars Kabel says about the topic.
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Asbjørn Slot Jørgensen, lecturer and assisting professor at the Danish School of Media and Journalism notes that five or ten years ago there was much more broad media coverage about Russia.
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Listen to what Asbjørn Slot Jørgensen. says about the topic.
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Jørgensen's point about narrow media coverage proved true on the streets of Copenhagen. The first piece of news about Russia that came into people's minds was something negative related to politics.
Russian highschool student Eugen Shapiro lives in Copenhagen, and feels neither Russian nor Danish. To him it seems that people don't understand the events that are going on in Russia.
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Kaakkuriniemi says that compared to the older Russians living abroad, the young are eager to integrate into the society, travel and they want to know for example, how much does the EU decide for the member countries.
They adapt to a new culture if there is just a starting point: a job, school or a relationship. Shapiro is one example of how building an identity might become difficult by not feeling completely Danish or Russian.
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For some it is hard to adapt to a new culture if they don't feel welcome. Anfimova doesn't feel like she's accepted in Denmark and as a result she might have to leave Denmark.
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" Danish media are dragging the Danish public opinion into a notion that a new Cold War exist " - Lars Kabel, lecturer at the Danish School of Media and Journalism.
" Now we don’t see any stories about other issues in Russia that are not politics and hot news." - Asbjørn Slot Jørgensen
Identity and insecurity
Research shows negative media covering
- Because of this non-understanding, people are afraid of Russia. - Eugen Shapiro
"This is one reason why some Russians in the Nordics feel inferior towads the Westerners. On the other hand, in the former USSR's countries Russians feel opposite. They are proud and open about their nationality." - Tapani Kaakkuriniemi