INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URBAN AND REGIONAL RESEARCH, 2022
Taking London as the research context, this article aims to explore the positioning of civil soci... more Taking London as the research context, this article aims to explore the positioning of civil society actors in bordering the differential inclusion/exclusion of asylum seekers and refugees. To do this, and understanding borders/bordering as spaces and social institutions, the article investigates the ways in which civil society actors intervene against bordering, with a particular focus on the labour market and housing. The empirical analysis illustrates that civil society actors seek to open up new spaces of inclusion and new subject positions for refugees and asylum seekers other than those imposed by established bordering processes. However, the capacity of civil society actors to contest the differential inclusion/exclusion enacted in bordering remains limited in the face of constraints produced by neoliberalization and existing political dynamics. More importantly, civil society actors are likely to align themselves with established bordering processes and structures, thus reproducing the differential exclusion/inclusion of asylum seekers and refugees.
This article focuses on the labour market integration of highly qualified female refugees in cosm... more This article focuses on the labour market integration of highly qualified female refugees in cosmopolitan Berlin and smaller towns in the county of Brandenburg. Based on interviews with civil society organisations designed mainly for female refugees, universities, employees of the job agency and government administrations, the gendered pathways of stratified access of this group to the labour markets of the two areas were analysed. Special attention was given to the role of emerging intermediary actors and their powers to influence stratified access to the labour markets. As this research shows, a variety of new approaches have evolved, and a web of migrationrelated jobs to support these women has been createdwith marked regional differences.
Raumforschung und Raumordnung | Spatial Research and Planning, 2019
This article critically discusses how Turkish migrants as an established migrant group have inter... more This article critically discusses how Turkish migrants as an established migrant group have interpreted and acted on the arrival of Syrian refugees in Berlin from 2015 onwards and whether their responses have resulted in new spaces in which new contestations and/or solidarities emerge. To this end, it focuses on the processes and the ways in which established groups (re-)articulate their urban citizenship and belonging to a particular urban space in relation to newcomers. Building on the analytical framework of relational and agency-centered articulation of urban citizenship and drawing on research data collected in the Kreuzberg and Neukölln neighborhoods of Berlin, the analysis has two main findings. Firstly, Turkish migrants have been involved in solidarity activities and contribute to a more inclusive urban citizenship regarding Syrian refugees. At the same time, they perceive Syrian refugees as a threat to their standing in the city and their right to the usage of urban space. This results in a more defensive urban citizenship against the refugees. Secondly, the unequal power relations and local, national and transitional dynamics act as intervening factors shaping Turkish migrants' responses to Syrian refugees and the process of urban citizenship formation.
This article explores the recent bordering practices across and around Europe, with a specific fo... more This article explores the recent bordering practices across and around Europe, with a specific focus on the construction of walls and fences. Since the outbreak of the Syrian war in 2011, thousands of refugees fleeing persecution have risked their lives crossing dangerous maritime and land borders while attempting to reach Europe. In the face of this intensification of refugee movements and the subsequent mass death around the borders, European countries have decided to erect more walls and fences instead of offering a protection to refugees. Rather than a novel theoretical and conceptual framework, this article seeks to subject these bordering practices and their material and discursive underpinnings to critical–analytical scrutiny, drawing on the frameworks offered by critical border studies. Concomitantly, it reflects on the detrimental impacts these practices are having on the rights of refugees and problematizes the approaches of European countries vis-à-vis present-day refugee movements.
Using the case of Berlin, this article examines civil society actors in relation to local borderi... more Using the case of Berlin, this article examines civil society actors in relation to local bordering practices following the large number of refugee arrivals in 2015. Combining critical border, migration, and urban studies and adopting a Foucauldian lens, the article aims to illustrate to what extent civil society actors have challenged and transformed local bordering practices vis-à-vis refugees within a specific urban space. The analysis illustrates that civil society actors have created new spaces of inclusion for refugees and brought new political and normative challenges to the established notions of belonging. On the other hand, they have also reproduced bordering practices either by their integration into formal state structures or by reinforcing hierarchical categorizations and unequal power relations embedded in the notion of humanitarianism. Finally, the article argues that these de/re-bordering practices of civil society actors should be understood in line with the constraints that established bordering processes and the existing political and structural dynamics placed on them.
Since the war erupted in Syria in 2011, Turkey has followed an “open door” policy toward Syrian r... more Since the war erupted in Syria in 2011, Turkey has followed an “open door” policy toward Syrian refugees. The Turkish government has been promoting this liberal policy through a humanitarian discourse that leads one to expect that Syrian refugees have not been securitized in Turkey. This article, however, argues that a security framework that emphasizes control and containment has been essential to the governance of Syrian refugees in Turkey, despite the presence of such non-securitarian discourses. To develop this argument, the article first builds an analytical framework based on a critical engagement with the theory of securitization, which was originally developed by the Copenhagen School. Unlike the Copenhagen School’s theory emphasizing “speech acts” as the vector of securitization, this article applies a sociological approach to the analysis of the securitization process by focusing on both discursive and non-discursive practices. In carrying out this analysis, securitizing practices, both discursive and non-discursive, are defined as those that: (1) emphasize “control and containment,” especially in relation to societal/public security concerns (here, specifically, the labor market and employment); and (2) establish a security continuum about various other issues—including criminality, terrorism, socioeconomic problems, and cultural deprivation—and thereby treat migrants as “risky” outsiders. Subsequently, in line with this analytical framework, the article seeks to trace the securitization of non-camp Syrian refugees, especially in the labor market. Finally, the article demonstrates that this securitization process is likely to conceal structural and political problems, and to close off alternative public and political debate about the refugees.
This study addresses the dynamics of new social movements with a special emphasis on the " Refuge... more This study addresses the dynamics of new social movements with a special emphasis on the " Refugees Welcome UK " in the light of the Syrian refugee crisis. Since March 2011, over four millions of people have fled civil war in Syria and sought refuge mainly in neighbouring countries, such as Turkey, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. However, precarious living circumstances and uncertain legal status in these countries have forced hundreds of thousands of Syrians to head for Europe in quest for a better life. The European countries, on the other hand, have adopted restrictive approaches towards Syrian refugees. Among these European countries, the UK has been the most criticized one because of its indifference to the plight of Syrian refugees. Under the leadership of David Cameron, the UK has taken a restrictive stance on accepting Syrian refugees and resisted any solution attempts at the EU level. Contrary to this anti-refugee approach at the state level, there emerged social movements in support of refugees throughout the UK. The most prominent one is the " Refugees Welcome " movement engaging in various strategies, ranging from seeking donation to raising public awareness. Building upon the insights of " New Social Movements " paradigm and using documentary analysis, this article explores the dynamics of this movement, its demands and objectives, social base, organizational structure, mobilization strategies and medium of action and social location. The article seeks to contribute both to the literature on social movements and to the current debate on refugees.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URBAN AND REGIONAL RESEARCH, 2022
Taking London as the research context, this article aims to explore the positioning of civil soci... more Taking London as the research context, this article aims to explore the positioning of civil society actors in bordering the differential inclusion/exclusion of asylum seekers and refugees. To do this, and understanding borders/bordering as spaces and social institutions, the article investigates the ways in which civil society actors intervene against bordering, with a particular focus on the labour market and housing. The empirical analysis illustrates that civil society actors seek to open up new spaces of inclusion and new subject positions for refugees and asylum seekers other than those imposed by established bordering processes. However, the capacity of civil society actors to contest the differential inclusion/exclusion enacted in bordering remains limited in the face of constraints produced by neoliberalization and existing political dynamics. More importantly, civil society actors are likely to align themselves with established bordering processes and structures, thus reproducing the differential exclusion/inclusion of asylum seekers and refugees.
This article focuses on the labour market integration of highly qualified female refugees in cosm... more This article focuses on the labour market integration of highly qualified female refugees in cosmopolitan Berlin and smaller towns in the county of Brandenburg. Based on interviews with civil society organisations designed mainly for female refugees, universities, employees of the job agency and government administrations, the gendered pathways of stratified access of this group to the labour markets of the two areas were analysed. Special attention was given to the role of emerging intermediary actors and their powers to influence stratified access to the labour markets. As this research shows, a variety of new approaches have evolved, and a web of migrationrelated jobs to support these women has been createdwith marked regional differences.
Raumforschung und Raumordnung | Spatial Research and Planning, 2019
This article critically discusses how Turkish migrants as an established migrant group have inter... more This article critically discusses how Turkish migrants as an established migrant group have interpreted and acted on the arrival of Syrian refugees in Berlin from 2015 onwards and whether their responses have resulted in new spaces in which new contestations and/or solidarities emerge. To this end, it focuses on the processes and the ways in which established groups (re-)articulate their urban citizenship and belonging to a particular urban space in relation to newcomers. Building on the analytical framework of relational and agency-centered articulation of urban citizenship and drawing on research data collected in the Kreuzberg and Neukölln neighborhoods of Berlin, the analysis has two main findings. Firstly, Turkish migrants have been involved in solidarity activities and contribute to a more inclusive urban citizenship regarding Syrian refugees. At the same time, they perceive Syrian refugees as a threat to their standing in the city and their right to the usage of urban space. This results in a more defensive urban citizenship against the refugees. Secondly, the unequal power relations and local, national and transitional dynamics act as intervening factors shaping Turkish migrants' responses to Syrian refugees and the process of urban citizenship formation.
This article explores the recent bordering practices across and around Europe, with a specific fo... more This article explores the recent bordering practices across and around Europe, with a specific focus on the construction of walls and fences. Since the outbreak of the Syrian war in 2011, thousands of refugees fleeing persecution have risked their lives crossing dangerous maritime and land borders while attempting to reach Europe. In the face of this intensification of refugee movements and the subsequent mass death around the borders, European countries have decided to erect more walls and fences instead of offering a protection to refugees. Rather than a novel theoretical and conceptual framework, this article seeks to subject these bordering practices and their material and discursive underpinnings to critical–analytical scrutiny, drawing on the frameworks offered by critical border studies. Concomitantly, it reflects on the detrimental impacts these practices are having on the rights of refugees and problematizes the approaches of European countries vis-à-vis present-day refugee movements.
Using the case of Berlin, this article examines civil society actors in relation to local borderi... more Using the case of Berlin, this article examines civil society actors in relation to local bordering practices following the large number of refugee arrivals in 2015. Combining critical border, migration, and urban studies and adopting a Foucauldian lens, the article aims to illustrate to what extent civil society actors have challenged and transformed local bordering practices vis-à-vis refugees within a specific urban space. The analysis illustrates that civil society actors have created new spaces of inclusion for refugees and brought new political and normative challenges to the established notions of belonging. On the other hand, they have also reproduced bordering practices either by their integration into formal state structures or by reinforcing hierarchical categorizations and unequal power relations embedded in the notion of humanitarianism. Finally, the article argues that these de/re-bordering practices of civil society actors should be understood in line with the constraints that established bordering processes and the existing political and structural dynamics placed on them.
Since the war erupted in Syria in 2011, Turkey has followed an “open door” policy toward Syrian r... more Since the war erupted in Syria in 2011, Turkey has followed an “open door” policy toward Syrian refugees. The Turkish government has been promoting this liberal policy through a humanitarian discourse that leads one to expect that Syrian refugees have not been securitized in Turkey. This article, however, argues that a security framework that emphasizes control and containment has been essential to the governance of Syrian refugees in Turkey, despite the presence of such non-securitarian discourses. To develop this argument, the article first builds an analytical framework based on a critical engagement with the theory of securitization, which was originally developed by the Copenhagen School. Unlike the Copenhagen School’s theory emphasizing “speech acts” as the vector of securitization, this article applies a sociological approach to the analysis of the securitization process by focusing on both discursive and non-discursive practices. In carrying out this analysis, securitizing practices, both discursive and non-discursive, are defined as those that: (1) emphasize “control and containment,” especially in relation to societal/public security concerns (here, specifically, the labor market and employment); and (2) establish a security continuum about various other issues—including criminality, terrorism, socioeconomic problems, and cultural deprivation—and thereby treat migrants as “risky” outsiders. Subsequently, in line with this analytical framework, the article seeks to trace the securitization of non-camp Syrian refugees, especially in the labor market. Finally, the article demonstrates that this securitization process is likely to conceal structural and political problems, and to close off alternative public and political debate about the refugees.
This study addresses the dynamics of new social movements with a special emphasis on the " Refuge... more This study addresses the dynamics of new social movements with a special emphasis on the " Refugees Welcome UK " in the light of the Syrian refugee crisis. Since March 2011, over four millions of people have fled civil war in Syria and sought refuge mainly in neighbouring countries, such as Turkey, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. However, precarious living circumstances and uncertain legal status in these countries have forced hundreds of thousands of Syrians to head for Europe in quest for a better life. The European countries, on the other hand, have adopted restrictive approaches towards Syrian refugees. Among these European countries, the UK has been the most criticized one because of its indifference to the plight of Syrian refugees. Under the leadership of David Cameron, the UK has taken a restrictive stance on accepting Syrian refugees and resisted any solution attempts at the EU level. Contrary to this anti-refugee approach at the state level, there emerged social movements in support of refugees throughout the UK. The most prominent one is the " Refugees Welcome " movement engaging in various strategies, ranging from seeking donation to raising public awareness. Building upon the insights of " New Social Movements " paradigm and using documentary analysis, this article explores the dynamics of this movement, its demands and objectives, social base, organizational structure, mobilization strategies and medium of action and social location. The article seeks to contribute both to the literature on social movements and to the current debate on refugees.
Turkey has followed an “open door” policy towards refugees from Syria since the March 2011 outbre... more Turkey has followed an “open door” policy towards refugees from Syria since the March 2011 outbreak of the devastating civil war in Syria. This “liberal” policy has been accompanied by a “humanitarian discourse” regarding the admission and accommodation of the refugees. In such a context, it is widely claimed that Turkey has not adopted a securitization strategy in its dealings with the refugees. However, this article argues that the stated “open door” approach and its limitations have gone largely unexamined. The assertion is, here, refugees fleeing Syria have been integrated into a security framework embedding exclusionary, militarized and technologized border practices. Drawing on the critical border studies, the article deconstructs these practices and the way they are violating the principle of non-refoulement in particular and human rights of refugees in general.
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Keywords:Berlin, bordering practices, civil society, humanitarianism, refugees.
Keywords:Berlin, bordering practices, civil society, humanitarianism, refugees.