What happens when war leaves millions stranded, stateless, and unwanted? In this episode of the Review of Democracy podcast, host Imogen Bayley discusses with renowned historian Sheila Fitzpatrick her latest book, Lost Souls: Soviet Displaced Persons and the Birth of the Cold War. Drawing from newly uncovered archival research, Fitzpatrick explores the lives of Soviet displaced persons—those who found themselves outside the USSR at the end of World War II and refused to return, despite intense Soviet pressure. Their fates became entangled in Cold War politics, as Western governments redefined them from war victims to symbols of anti-communist resistance. From forced repatriations and identity manipulation to the geopolitical power struggles that shaped global refugee policy, this discussion reveals how history’s displaced individuals exercised agency in ways that continue to shape modern migration debates. Listen to our podcast on exile, political propaganda, and the lasting impact of Cold War resettlement strategies.
Sheila Fitzpatrick is the author of many books, including On Stalin’s Team: The Years of Living Dangerously in Soviet Politics (Princeton), The Shortest History of the Soviet Union, and The Russian Revolution. She is professor of history at the Institute of Humanities and Social Science at the Australian Catholic University and Distinguished Service Professor Emerita at the University of Chicago.
Imogen Bayley is a historian and migration studies scholar who earned her PhD in Comparative History from Central European University and is currently, as a Max Weber Fellow at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy. Her book, Postwar Migration Policy and the Displaced of the British Zone in Germany, 1945–1951. Fighting for a Future, was recently published by Palgrave Macmillan.
The interview was conducted by Imogen Bayley. Lilit Hakobyan edited the audio file.
