As immigration courts narrow legal pathways, ‘refugee roulette’ still favors Russian asylum seekers

Asked why she wanted to settle in Minnesota, Maria Zavialova responded with the realpolitik outlook of a mother who immigrated across oceans and continents alone with her children:

“It’s not just what I like and what I want,” she said, “it’s what is possible.”

Zavialova, curator at the Russian Museum of Art in Minneapolis, was legally allowed to stay because she made herself indispensable.  Several years after earning her doctorate at the University of Minnesota in 2008, she applied for and received a National Interest Waiver, a green card pathway that lets accomplished individuals in certain fields self-sponsor if their work is deemed to be in the national interest.

Socially and financially, she was able to stay because there were Russian, and non-Russian...