Drawing the Line. An Inquiry over the Political Role of Volunteers at Border Crossings

Maddalena Landi; Marco d'Alessandro

doi:10.6092/issn.2035-7141/16571

Autori

Maddalena Landi University of Business and Economics of Vienna (WU)

Maddalena Landi is a Master student at the University of Business and Economics of Vienna (WU), studying Socio-Ecological Economics and Policy. She has volunteered in conflict zones with the Italian organization Operazione Colomba and has worked as a social worker with migrant women victims of violence and sex trafficking with Mondodonna Onlus. Her research focuses on the intersection between migration, climate change and gender equality.
Marco d'Alessandro

Marco d’Alessandro is a freelance cartoonist and post-grad independent researcher. He braids the academic path - focusing on semiotics, cognitive sciences, and visual culture - with the manyfold spaces of comics and illustration, from underground festivals to international collaborations. Currently, he is studying comics as a didactic and divulgative tool within the academia while working as a cartoonist, illustrator and graphic facilitator. His last project is a series of illustrated books for children about death and grief, in collaboration with the University of Ferrara.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.2035-7141/16571

Parole chiave:

Migration, Volunteerism, Borders, Politicisation, Comics Based Research

Abstract

Despite the impact that volunteering can have, the role of the volunteer at border crossings has received little academic attention, with most of the focus being placed on the spotlight from right-wing, populist parties. For instance, cases of attacks and smear campaigns against civil organizations providing aid to migrants have been reported in Spain and Italy. The charges range from trafficking to white-collar crimes and aiding illegal immigration, leading to what has been labeled as the criminalization of solidarity. However, the impact of this criminalization on the volunteer, as well as the political meaning of the volunteer’s role, has been understudied. With this in mind, this paper draws from feminist theory, which recognizes the personal as a critical and under-explored site of inquiry for the political. Our research seeks to understand the political meaning of volunteering at border crossings by exploring the emotions of the volunteers themselves. This study will focus on volunteers from the European Union who have had experiences at EU borders, and through their narratives, the paper aims to uncover the meanings constructed during the process of helping others. The paper will examine the experiences of being at the border and returning from, and it will ask which meanings people attach to these experiences and whether they can have political power in a feminist sense.