1,721,112 research outputs found
Writing the ‘Refugee Crisis’:Proposals for Activist Research
No full textThis chapter presents an antidote to the academic tendency to aestheticize a calamity like the refugee crisis. In it, I begin by arguing that because of the exceptional nature of the crisis symbolized by the young in exile, our academic engagement with their suffering should in fact be a ‘barefoot’ (Scheper-Hughes 1995: 417) endeavour that delivers a narrative of the ‘crisis’ wherein the moral and ethical commitment to doing something lies not in the background but the forefront of the ‘story’ we relay. But while some works on activist research often treat the academic endeavour as a tool for subsequent activism, I purport that the activism should be inherent in the way we academically write up the ‘stories’ of refugee children, not least those of young Syrians in exile. Subsequently, I present proposals for the conceptual and methodological choices this ‘brand’ of activist research should make that in turn would ensure that the resulting text shocks and alarms and refuses to treat the horror that informs this ‘crisis’ at an ‘arm’s length’
Introduction
No full textLanguage is never just a means of communication. It terrorizes. And, especially in times of war, it has the ability to target civilians and generate fear as a means of producing specific political outcomes, most notably the passive and active acceptance of state violence itself. For this reason, the critical examination of language must be a central part of any effort to fight imperialism, militarism, demagoguery, racism, sexism, and other structures of injustice. Globalizing Collateral Language examines the discourse surrounding 9/11 and its entrenchment in global politics and culture.To interrogate this wartime lexicon of "collateral language," editors John Collins and Somdeep Sen have assembled a volume of critical essays that explores the long shadow of America's "War on Terror" discourse. They illuminate how this language has now found resonance across the globe and in political projects that have little to do with the "War on Terror." Two decades after the attacks of September 11, 2001, this book calls on us to resist the tyranny of collateral language at a time when the need for such interventions in the public sphere is more urgent than ever
The Young and Exiled:An Introduction
No full textSince the start of the confl ict in Syria in 2011, Syrian refugee children havewithstood violence, uncertainty, fear, trauma and loss. This book follows theirjourneys by bringing together scholars and practitioners to refl ect on how to make their situation better and to get this knowledge to as many front liners – across European and neighbouring countries in the Middle East – as possible.The book is premised on the underlying conception of refugee children asnot merely a vulnerable contingent of the displaced Syrian population, but onethat possesses a certain agency for change and progress. In this vein, the various contributions aim to not just de-securitize the ‘conversation’ on migration that frequently centres on the presumed insecurity that refugees personify. They also de-securitize the fi gure and image of the refugee. Through the stories of the youngest and most vulnerable, they demonstrate that refugee children are not mere opaque fi gures on whom we project our insecurities. Instead, they embody potentials and opportunities for progress that we need to nurture, as young refugees fi nd themselves compelled to both negotiate the practical realities of a life in exile, and situate themselves in changing and unfamiliar socio-cultural contexts. Drawing on extensive fi eld research, this edited volume points in the direction of a new rights based framework which will safeguard the future of these children and their well-being. Offering a comparative lens between approaches to tackling refugees in the Middle East and Europe, this book will appeal to students and scholars of refugees and migration studies and human rights, as well as anyone with an interest in the Middle East or Europe
From a state of shock to agency in liminality, Syrians and their children on the move
No full textLess than 10% of the estimated total of 11 million Syrians who fled their homes, have actually reached Europe; around 4.8 million Syrian refugees live in neighbouring countries and over 6.6 million are internally displaced people (IDP) within Syria (Migration Policy Centre, 2016). In 2014, the author travelled back to northern Syria, where she conducted anthropological fieldwork in the past between 1997 and 2002, and visited the IDP camps of Atmeh and Qah. This chapter maps out the situation of Syrian children in these IDP camps, compared to trajectories of Syrian refugee children to Europe. Located in so-called “hard-to-reach-areas”, IDP camps are camps of liminality by their locality and marginalisation, “betwixt and between” (Turner, 1969). The IDP camps are not supposed to be permanent, yet all signs are present they will grow into permanent settlements as observed with satellite imagery. Due to the lack of international aid, children in these camps struggle with a severe lack of basic needs supply and education. By comparing the trajectories of Syrian children in Europe with those living inside IDP camps, the author considers the nexus between agency, locality, liminality, mobility and trajectories. The empirical material is based on personal fieldvisits to IDP camps, satellite imagery and interviews with Syrians in Syria, Turkey and the Netherlands
Why does India hate Arundhati Roy?
No full textIndia’s government is targeting the acclaimed author because she speaks to the most foundational corruptions that underlie the socioeconomic and political pillars of the Indian state
Global War, Global Words? A Discourse Analysis of Selected Key Documents in Politics and Media Shaping the Aftermath of 9/11 to Provide the War on Terror with a Global Framing
No full textThe war on terror, a policy to take decisive measures against actors identified to be terrorists, was implemented by then-US President George W. Bush and, depending on its interpretation, still marks an ongoing issue in the world today. Emerging from the terrorist attacks in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania on September 11, 2001, and known simply as “9/11”, the war on terror did not only bind generations of US and allied military forces overseas but directly and indirectly impacted the lives of thousands of people around the world.With scientific approximations to the unprecedented event being manyfold, this project ap-proaches the war on terror from an angle beyond the one of the United States. Starting from the paradox that the terrorists attacked exclusively targets on US soil it is asked how the war on terror, a project initiated and largely shaped by President Bush, went global. This question is looked at from the political perspective, i.e., by in-depth content analyses of ten selected presidential speeches, and the media sphere in that a fuzzy content analysis of newspaper arti-cles and TV footage is conducted. Taken together, the both arenas form a discourse which is understood in the tradition of Laclau and Mouffe.Results uncover the importance of sentiments from the very first hours after the attack to pre-sent-day manifestations of the discourse. Initial reactions of some print sources showed very emotional and violent language, showcasing the as horrific displayed nature of the event and establishing that the entire nation is experiencing the associated negative emotions. The initial reactions from television contained more shock and confusion, since the channels were report-ing as the event was taking place and did not have all the answers. Print sources had more time to gather concrete information and had more space to include details. Being seen as a national threat, not a local or international one, government leaders were also quick to provide guidance. Although they were initially ill-equipped to handle the event, they soon reacted with words of outrage. Through close interplay of politics and media, 9/11 sparked a conversation surround-ing fear, insecurity, and the need to take action.This action was soon named the war on terror by George W. Bush. Through examining Bush’s speeches and, subsequently, the words of the media, recurring patterns regarding words and phrasing can be noticed which, over time, provide the attacks with a clear narrative that even-tually frames both the acts of Islamist terror (“evil”) and the governmental responses (“peace-ful”, “just”, “defense”). The prevailing ideas center around elements such as othering, identi-fying “evil”, danger, and a universal responsibility to take action.The analysis shows how certain keywords develop differently over time in the political arena and how they are reflected in the media sphere, eventually shaping a discourse centering around some carefully chosen terms. Over and over again it can be seen how President Bush divides the world and with it countries and people into two: allies versus enemies, peaceful versus evil, civilized versus barbaric, us versus them. In initial political reactions, words like anger and grief characterize the statements, yet they are not consecutively used thereafter but replaced by terms such as security, defense, and strength, which over time fix their meaning in the context4and turn into quasi-winged words. War on terror is among them, increasingly gathering mo-mentum with the US invasions of Afghanistan 2001 and, especially, Iraq 2002.However, with the exception of civilization, no analyzed term unfolds a global character. On the contrary, the political discourse proves to be extremely nationalistic, even when Bush gives speeches at the United Nations at a distinctly international audience. Accordingly, the research question remains partly unanswered and should be addressed in further inquiries to overcome weaknesses of the given study as well as to further substantiate or question, respectively, its results and follow up with closely related questions.Nonetheless, the project brings insightful findings to light. It is shown that the media discourse, across all political dividing lines and from printed to televised content, reported very uncritical about the political reactions and Bush’s policies following the attacks. As a matter of fact, many media outlets copy-pasted releases from the White House, largely quoting the President and, as a consequence, quickly transforming the political into the overarching general discourse in the US. A discourse which acted as the model for international impacts such as ongoing inter-racial and interreligious disputes, increased security measures, and increased restrictions on immigration
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