The narrative of the besieged Ukrainian underdog was indelible and undeniable. It shaped the chorus of Western media support for the Ukrainian resistance and the millions of refugees flooding neighboring nations and those beyond. It dissolved traditional divides on immigration across the continent and in the United States; immigration was no longer a wedge issue, at least for Ukrainians. However, it remained virulently divisive when the refugees were Arabs or Muslims, Black or Brown immigrants washed from their homelands by Western war or economic despair.

SEED: Could develop into an essay on how the framing of refugees — as 'underdogs' vs. as threats — determines public sympathy and political consensus, comparing Ukrainian vs. Middle Eastern refugee coverage.

Khaled A. Beydoun, The New Crusades_ Islamopho…, loc. 1195