Refugees, Humanitarian Emergencies, and the Politicization of Life

The concept of "humanitarian emergency" has come to be largely synonymous with contemporary refugee situations. The purpose of this paper is to critically explore the connections between the categorization of refugees as an "emergency" situation and the way in which "humanitarianism" has come to constitute a hegemonic discourse in which academics, policy-makers, international organizations, and refugee advocates must formulate their arguments and actions. Humanitarianism is often portrayed as posing a challenge to the codes and practices of state sovereignty because it is a form of action which is purportedly motivated by a sense of obligation and responsibility to "humanity" that goes beyond the responsibility one feels for fellow citizens. This paper analyzes a series of recent UNHCR representations of refugees to suggest that humanitarianism must instead be understood as an inherently political concept. Drawing upon the writings Giorgio Agamben, this paper demonstrates how humanitarianism is always already (bio)political to the extent that it relies on a conception of "bare human life" which is consistent with the practices of state sovereignty. From this perspective, framing the refugee phenomenon as a "humanitarian emergency" works to sustain constitutive practices which stabilize and reproduce statist resolutions to questions of political identity, community, and world order.Le concept d'« urgence humanitaire » est devenu une sorte de synonyme général de « situation contemporainedes réfugiés ». Le but de cet article est de procéder à une exploration critique des liens entre la catégorisation du refuge comme situation d'« urgence » et la façon dont l'idée d'« humanitarisme » en est venue à se constituer en discours hégémonique, dans le cadre duquel les universitaires, les décideurs, les organisations internationales, et les défendeurs des droits des réfugiés se voient obligés de formuler leurs arguments et leurs actions. L'humanitarisme est souvent dépeint comme posant un défi aux codes et pratiques de la souveraineté des états, car c'est une forme d'action qui serait motivée par un sens de la responsabilité et des obligations envers l'« humanité » qui outrepasserait les responsabilités que l'on aurait envers ses concitoyens. Le présent article analyse une récente série de représentations de réfugiés du HCR visant asuggérer que l'humanitarisme devrait plutôt être compris comme in concept fondamentalement politique. Fondé sur les écrits de Giorgio Agamben, le présent article démontre comment l'humanitarisme est toujours déjà (bio)politique dans la mesure où il se fonde sur une conception de la « vie humaine minimale » quiest conformeàles pratiques des états souverains. Dans cette perspective, formuler le phénomène du refuge en terme d'« urgence humanitaire» tend à perpétuer des pratiques constitutives qui stabilisent et reproduisent la résolution étatiste des questions d'identité politique, de commùnautés, d'ordre mondial

Roundtable Report “No One Is Illegal”: The Fight for Refugee and Migrant Rights in Canada

On 8 December 2002, a roundtable discussion was held with members of the Action Committee for Non-Status Algerians (Montreal), the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (Toronto), and No One Is Illegal (Montreal). In this transcription of the discussion, the non-status Algerian refugees share their experiences of living in Canada without formal status, a situation which they characterize as being degrading, unlivable, and absurd. The participants discuss the possibilities for organizing opposition to increasingly restrictive and repressive refugee and immigration policies. They examine the viability of anti-deportation campaigns, direct action casework, and the prospects for a broad-based movement in defence of refugee and migrant rights.Le 8 décembre 2002 a eu lieu une table ronde réunissant des membres du Comité d’action des sans-statut Algériens (Montréal), la Coalition ontarienne contre la pauvreté (Toronto) et No One is Illegal (« Personne n’est illégal ») (Montréal). Ce qui suit est une transcription des discussions qui ont eu lieu, au cours desquelles les Algériens sans statut partagent leur expérience de la vie au Canada sans un statut reconnu, une situation qu’ils qualifient de dégradante, invivable et absurde. Les participants examinent les possibilités d’organiser une opposition aux politiques en matière d’immigration et du traitement des réfugiés qui deviennent de plus en plus répressives et restrictives. Ils explorent la viabilité des campagnes anti-déportation, l’action directe et les possibilités d’organiser un mouvement rassembleur pour la défense des droits des réfugiés et des migrants

In solitary, in solidarity

This article assesses the challenges to a key 'anti-policy' within anti-terrorism: the detention of terror suspects. It analyses the global response to the 2005 kidnapping of a Christian Peacemaker Team in Iraq. Particular focus is given to how detainees in the 'War on Terror' emerged as key spokespeople in the attempt to influence the actions of the kidnappers. So-called 'terror detainees' in the UK and Canada made several appeals for mercy and wrote letters establishing their solidarity with the CPT hostages. Drawing on the political theory of Jacques Ranciere, the article analyses examples of detainee or hostage solidarity as acts of political subjectification. Detention is analysed as a site where key political dynamics are enacted. For detainees to articulate a grievance as an equal or enact an international solidarity is a radical political moment that serves to disrupt the routines and normalizations of the anti-policy of detention

The thinking citizenship series

The introduction to the new series of articles in Citizenship Studies

(En)gendering the political: Citizenship from marginal spaces

This introduction sets out the central concerns of this special issue, the relationship between marginality and the political. In doing so it makes the argument that the process of marginalisation, the sites and experiences of ‘marginality’ provide a different lens through which to understand citizenship. Viewing the political as the struggle over belonging it considers how recent studies of citizenship have understood political agency. It argues that marginality can help us understand multiple scales, struggles and solidarities both within and beyond citizenship. Whilst there is a radical potential in much of the existing literature in citizenship studies it is also important to consider political subjectivities and acts which are not subsumed by right claims. Exploring marginality in this way means understanding how subjects are disenfranchised by regimes of citizenship and at the same how time this also (en)genders new political possibilities which are not always orientated towards 'inclusion'. The introduction then sets out how each article contributes to this project

‘Wandering and settled tribes’: biopolitics, citizenship, and the racialized migrant

This paper argues that purportedly outdated racial categories continue to resonate in contemporary forms of racialization. I examine the use of metaphors of rootedness and shadows by a contemporary UK migrant advocacy organization and its allies to justify migrant regularization and manage illicit circulation. I argue that the distinction between rooted and rootless peoples draws on the colonial and racial distinctions between wandering and settled peoples. Contemporary notions of citizenship continue to draw upon and activate racial forms of differentiation. Citizenship is thus part of a form of racial governance that operates not only along biological but also social and cultural lines, infusing race into the structures, practices, and techniques of governance