She was in Kyiv when the war started.

The young woman, who comes from Sierra Leone, came to Lemberg with friends via detours.

From there they walked to the Polish border, where there were two queues: one for whites, one for "everyone else".

They waited in the cold for hours, then she collapsed, lay in a hospital for two days, and finally made it onto a bus to Poland.

When it was announced at the border that "all black people" had to get off, she refused - and finally arrived in Premissel (Przemyśl) in Poland.

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This is how the CNN journalist Bijan Hosseini describes the experiences of his adoptive sister.

And this is not an isolated case.

What people with dark skin color report from Ukraine sounds frightening.

Videos on social media with the hashtags #AfricansinUkraine or #IndiansinUkraine show harrowing scenes.

Employees of Ukrainian and Polish authorities are said to have prevented people with dark skin from fleeing the war-torn country, pushed them at full speed and held them back at the border.

According to the UN, more than 660,000 people have fled Ukraine since the Russian attack a week ago, and a good half of them are said to have arrived in Poland.

Moldova, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary are also taking in refugees.

The government in Warsaw has ordered all people coming from Ukraine to be allowed into the country - even without complete documents.

This includes Indians, Moroccans, Nigerians and Egyptians studying in Ukraine.

"You are left to your own devices"

Unlike many Ukrainians, they rarely have relatives or friends in Poland.

"You're left to your own devices," says Joanna Stolarek.

The head of the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Warsaw experiences a great willingness to help refugees from the Ukraine - regardless of skin color.

According to her, everyone is taken on trains or buses.

"Smartphones are collected and even separate housing exchanges are set up for African and Indian students." Nevertheless, racism is a problem in Poland.

"The reports that Poland doesn't let black people into the country aren't true," says Stolarek.

She does not rule out the possibility that there may be problems in individual cases.

"Poland has to polish its image, show a human face." She is also thinking of the "pushbacks" on the Polish-Belarusian border.

It is unclear how many foreign students there are in Ukraine: the UN educational organization UNESCO puts it at just over 61,000;

According to the Ministry of Education of Ukraine, there are about 80,000 from more than 150 countries.

Students from India have the largest share with a good quarter.

The Nigerian government estimates that there are around 4,000 Nigerians in the country, the vast majority of whom are also students.

The Soviet Union made it possible for young people from “socialist brother states” to study there.

Today, Ukraine is popular as a study country because courses are offered in English and study and living costs are lower than in other European countries.

According to the accounts on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok, especially many are studying medicine.

These students are now fleeing rocket fire and bombing.

They are often discriminated against.

A young Nigerian woman reports on "Zeit Online" that she was initially pushed out of a train to Lemberg in Kyiv.

A “white woman” then pulled her into it.

When the sirens sounded in Lemberg and she sought shelter, a shopkeeper didn't let her in.

A Nigerian who had already made it to Poland told the newspaper Welt that he was told on the train that he had no business there because he was not Ukrainian.

Amal Abass from the Berlin association Each One Teach One (EOTO) also reports that black people are discriminated against when fleeing.

EOTO supports black and African people in Germany and is currently also on duty at the Polish-Ukrainian border - the team offers legal support and distributes SIM cards and power banks.

"But we don't have enough of that," says Abass.

There is also a lack of food and psychological care.

Another convoy made its way there on Wednesday.

According to Abass, some did not survive the escape from Ukraine.

"People have already frozen to death at the border." She demands that the European Union implement the "mass influx directive".

Then refugees could easily get a residence permit.

Discussions are scheduled to take place this Thursday.

"Much too late," says Abass.

She also criticizes the fact that Deutsche Bahn only transports Ukrainian nationals free of charge.