Special issue: Contesting and undoing discriminatory borders
| Author | Nicole Busby,Grace James |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/13582291221116612 |
| Published date | 01 September 2022 |
| Date | 01 September 2022 |
| Subject Matter | Editorial |
Editorial
International Journal of
Discrimination and the Law
2022, Vol. 22(3) 209
© The Author(s) 2022
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DOI: 10.1177/13582291221116612
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Special issue: Contesting and
undoing discriminatory borders
Welcome to this Special issue of the International Journal of Discrimination and the Law
in which we are delighted to hand over editorial duties to our Guest Editors Shreya Atrey,
Catherine Briddick and Michelle Foster.
The topic of the special issue could not be more pertinent. International migration has
substantially increased in recent years: the UN has estimated that more than 280 million
people were living outside their country of origin in 2020. As the guest editors highlight in
their introduction, people migrate for a variety of different reasons –personal, economic,
social, cultural and to seek protection from imminent risk and immediate danger. Even
those who enjoy freedom of movement, may face a myriad of challenges intensified in
recent years by the global pandemic. The shift towards nationalist populist discourse
within Europe and elsewhere has given rise to hostile environments for migrants,
whatever their reasons for moving across states. Such discourse is too often fuelled by
policy makers seeking to assert control over national borders. However, as the rich
contributions to this special issue illustrate, such borders and the rules that govern them
can be arbitrarily drawn and applied. Migrants too often face severe discrimination, often
by virtue of national laws, so that they are denied access to basic services, rais ing
questions about states’adherence to international human rights standards. A lack of
policies that fail to identify and to meet the specific needs of migrant populations can lead
to exclusion from or substandard treatment in the allocation of resources and service
provision in areas such as housing, education, health, access to work or social security. As
this timely collection of papers ably demonstrates, issues of migration are issues of
concern for all of those interested in discrimination law. We hope you enjoy reading this
excellent special issue as much as we have.
Professor Nicole Busby, University of Glasgow, UK
Professor Grace James, University of Reading, UK
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