From Lampedusa to the Susa Valley: solidarity networks in two border battlegrounds

Abstract

Since the beginning of the ‘reception crisis’ in 2015, the term ‘solidarity’ has been widely employed in Europe by networks supporting migrants in transit. These networks – while increasingly important and prominent in contemporary Europe − are still understudied and have only recently been addressed in migration studies. The research takes place in two crucial border zones: on the one hand, the island of Lampedusa, which is a sea point of entry into Europe through Italy;on the other, the Susa Valley, an alpine point of exit from Italy that allows the passage to France. How are the solidarity networks put together? How do they interact with the mobility practices of migrants in transit? How do the practices of solidarity fit in with the ways authorities act at the border? The ethnographic fieldwork was developed in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and aims to answer these interconnected research questions. (English) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] RIASSUNTO Dal 2015, inizio della cosiddetta crisi dell accoglienza , il termine solidarieta e stato usato diffusamente in Europa dalle reti che supportano i migranti in transito. Queste reti - sebbene sempre pie importanti nell Europa contemporanea - sono ancora poco studiate e solo di recente hanno interessato i migration studies. La ricerca e stata sviluppata in due luoghi di frontiera cruciali: da un lato l Isola di Lampedusa, frontiera in entrata dell Europa attraverso l Italia;dall altro, la Valsusa, frontiera in uscita dall Italia verso la Francia. Come interagiscono le diverse reti della solidarieta? Come queste si connettono con le pratiche di mobilita dei migranti in transito? Come le pratiche di solidarieta si confrontano con le forme di controllo delle autorita agite al confine? Il campo di ricerca etnografico e stato sviluppato durante la pandemia di COVID-19 e si pone l obbiettivo di rispondere a queste interconnesse domande di ricerca. (French) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Modern Italian Studies is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder s express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)