From Omission to Action: Aligning Social Work Research with the Needs of Excluded Forcibly Displaced Populations

Background and Purpose:

Exclusion from forced migration research not only distorts the historical record but perpetuates harm by denying recognition, support, and belonging to displaced populations whose experiences fall outside dominant political or moral narratives. This study uses the case of ethnic Germans displaced from Central and Eastern Europe after World War II to examine the long-term consequences of such erasure and explore how narrative reclamation can support intergenerational healing and expand the reach of social work research and practice.

Despite the scale of this postwar displacement—impacting 12–15 million individuals forced to flee from their ancestral Central and Eastern European homes—ethnic Germans have been largely omitted from U.S. refugee policy, migration research, and public discourse. Their complex identities, notably male conscription into the German military, contributed to moral ambiguity and political discomfort, further reinforcing their exclusion. This study investigates the structural and emotional impact of this historical silencing and asks: How have survivors and descendants experienced and internalized the erasure of their displacement history? What intergenerational impacts emerge from this exclusion? And how might narrative inclusion reshape social work’s research priorities and educational approaches?

Methods:

This qualitative study draws from 28 oral histories collected in 2023 as part of the author’s doctoral dissertation research. Participants included ethnic German survivors and descendants who resettled in the United States after World War II. Using snowball sampling, participants were recruited through cultural and community networks. Semi-structured interviews explored experiences of forced displacement, post-migration adaptation, identity, memory, and family communication. Transcripts were thematically coded and analyzed using ATLAS.ti. Codes were reviewed and grouped to identify recurring patterns across participant narratives, leading to the development of key themes related to silencing, intergenerational connection/disconnection, and narrative repair.

Results:

Three central themes emerged: silencing and stigma, in which survivors concealed their histories to assimilate and avoid judgment; intergenerational identity confusion, with descendants describing fragmented identities and emotional distance from their family’s past; and narrative reclamation, where participation in the study served as a catalyst for intergenerational dialogue, reflection, and identity repair. Findings indicate that exclusion from refugee discourse was not incidental but reinforced by academic and legal frameworks privileging morally unambiguous victimhood. The research process itself functioned as a reparative experience for many participants.

Conclusions and Implications:

This study demonstrates that the erasure of politically complex displaced populations has enduring psychosocial and scholarly consequences. By reclaiming silenced histories, social work researchers can lead transformative change—expanding the field’s reach, community relevance, and ability to engage across historical and political complexity. Implications include integrating overlooked displacement histories into social work curricula, expanding frameworks of refugee recognition, and using narrative methods to support healing and connection across generations. This project advances SSWR’s vision by bridging historical analysis, inquiry, and justice-centered practice in the service of inclusion and systemic change.