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Children living in a Swiss cantonal asylum centre repeatedly asked the researcher studying their everyday lives to ‘come to my house’ and were also often talking about that they did not belong and couldn’t feel at home. What does it mean for children to live in a place where they don’t want to and cannot feel home? In order to answer this question, this chapter explores the ‘houses’ of the ‘camp’ – rooms that children live with their parent(s). The children’s homing strategies (Winther, 2009) in a non-place (Augé, 1995/2010) will be examined using examples from an ethnographic study that took place between 2019 and 2020 in a ‘cantonal center’ – or as the children put it ‘camp’. This examination reveals how homing strategies are deployed within the adversarial structural conditions of Swiss cantonal camps.
Social work, both as a profession and as an academic discipline, is – at least theoretically – in a privileged position to capture the nuances of migration, given that social workers are present during the different stages of migration and asylum processes as well as at academic, practitioner and policy-making levels. However, the mere presence of social workers in the field is not necessarily a synonym of commitment and/or social transformation, as practitioners and academics may just replicate, unquestioningly, the guidelines dictated by governments and/or funding institutions or – quite the opposite – foster a critical perspective in their daily routines.
In this chapter, we reflect on the possibilities of social work research to influence migration policies, and more specifically, EU migration policies. To this end, we look at the past to get inspired by social work pioneers, but also to the future by reflecting on what is needed to raise awareness about issues that can be challenging for social work research from a critical perspective. We also reflect on the roles that academia, public institutions and organisations play by enabling or blocking this kind of research. Last but not least, we explore to what extent social work (and social work research) is present at decision-making levels.
We anticipate that social work research plays a very limited role in influencing migration policies and that it could play a much greater role in case some changes were operationalised. This chapter aims, thus, to highlight the root causes of this lack of influence and stimulate reflection that encompasses academia, organisations, institutions and individuals in making sure research is more influential in the future.
In the epilogue, the editors of the book highlight three main points: the key themes discussed in the previous chapters through a European perspective; the intended use of the book offering more than one views for practice, education and research; a reference to the particular times of the production and publishing of the book, mentioning the new crises and challenges linked to the cOVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Lastly, the best way to complete this book is recalling the commitment, the vision and the sense of hope shared by all involved authors. From different countries and with different backgrounds, they have shown, and will show, before and after this contribution, passion, critical thinking and responsibility towards the life of migrant people and the role of social work.
On the night of 8 September 2020, the Lesvos’ Reception and Identification Centre (RIC) – better known as Moria-hotspot – was set on fire by its inhabitants. After two days of consecutive fires, ‘the worst refugee camp on earth’, according to MSF, was burned to the ground. At that moment, the camp and the surrounding olive groves were the residence of circa 12,500 people, among which more than 400 unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) living in inhumane conditions. A few days later, the URMs from Moria were poised to be relocated to other EU countries, providing an Aristotelian catharsis after the ongoing tragedy. This event was followed by another attempted arson, that of the overcrowded Samos Reception and Identification Centre. It started from the URMs’ quarters, a desperate attempt to make themselves visible by setting their living space on fire. The purpose of this chapter is to see how international, European and national legislation on unaccompanied minors are translated into actual reception practices in the RICs on the Greek islands. We hereto examine relevant international, EU and Greek legislation, describe the evolution of the Greek refugee camps on the islands of Lesvos and Samos, and analyse interviews with URMs about their experiences in these hotspots.
Social work with refugees in the First Reception and Identification Centres in Greece includes many challenges and peculiarities. In an emergency setting, without the necessary tools, often without the necessary space, social workers are called upon to provide quality services, deal with crises and solve problems by combining assistance to the individual with the protection of the whole camp population. In this chapter we will focus on the work of the social workers in the RIC of Samos as it emerged from the research of the European Research Council ChildMove project.
During the refugee crisis (2015–today), social workers have been in the frontline of a contradictory context of repressive migration policies and their value quest for anti-oppressive practice. This chapter will focus on social work education, discussing the need to undertake a more political and activist approach based on the critical and anti-oppressive values of the profession. The discussion is informed by a collaborative intercultural project between students and staff on migration, everyday bordering and (anti-)oppressive social work practices. The project involved MA social work students from a university in the North East of England, organising a series of events aimed at raising awareness and crowdfunding in relation to the refugee crisis. In addition to this a group of students and two lecturers went on a study trip to Athens, Greece, where they debated the concepts of human rights and social justice with frontline professionals, refugee activists and social work students to develop understandings of social work across international boundaries and contexts of practice. This experience was used as an opportunity for reflection, co-learning and anti-oppressive praxis by students and staff, revealing the thriving opportunity for social work education to be the space for activism and critical consciousness at local and (inter)national contexts.
This book intends to identify the reality of migration and asylum in Europe through the lenses of the research done by social work academics from nine different countries. Along its 11 chapters a true European perspective is also provided and many questions arise regarding the role of social work research at practitioner level, at academic level and at political level.
This chapter explores the narratives of teenage girls who arrived in Sweden between 2014 and 2017 seeking refuge. Their stories of integration through existential struggles relating to rights, identity and belonging stand in contrast to a Swedish integration discourse that emphasises labour market integration. The girls question how their process of integration is framed, as circumstances beyond their control impact on their chances of staying in Sweden. In different ways they argue against how their personal struggles are disregarded leaving them without recognition and support. The chapter highlights the discrepancy between a general integration discourse that conceptualise integration as individual achievements and integration as it is reflected upon by the girls themselves.
With cross-cultural perspectives from contributors in nine countries, this book showcases much-needed research on current issues around migration and social work in Europe. Focusing on the reception, experiences and integration of refugees and asylum seekers, the chapters also consider the impact of recent EU policies on borders and integration.
With racism on the rise in some European societies, the book foregrounds international social work values as a common framework to face discriminatory practice at macro and micro-levels. Featuring recommendations for inclusive practice that ‘opens doors’, this book features the voices of migrants and the practitioners aiding their inclusion in new societies.
As human beings, people in need should have the right to access services and support to improve their living conditions, irrespective of their backgrounds. However, in reality, practising this principle is often ridden with complexity; therefore, social work organisations continue to grapple with the problem of accessibility towards ethnic minorities. Research and practice reveal that the accessibility of social work practices and social work organisations for ethnic minorities depends on several objective and subjective factors. These factors impose different responsibilities on social workers and organisations at the political and managerial levels of the welfare system. Considering the Italian social work context, this study uses the metaphor of the door-closing and door-opening movements within the welfare system to show how the former prevents, discourages or limits the access of ethnic minorities to the required support, while the latter facilitates them in navigating the system.
