DISPLACED, ASYLUM SEEKERS AND REFUGEES

The course is part of the common core-teachings of the Master's Degree Programme in Work, Social Citizenship, Interculturality, and aims to:
- strengthen the methodological tools relating to the analysis of migration processes and policies.
- provide knowledges about the Italian and European systems of international protection of refugees and asylum seekers.
Students will learn how to:
- critically analyse and understand the role of the public institutions involved in the management of refugees and asylum seekers, and the representations of these social groups provided by media and political actors.
- apply some theoretical concepts and categories to the study and understanding of forced migrations.

1. Knowledge and understanding

By the end of the course students are expected to know:
- the theoretical concepts as well as the basic and specialized terminology concerning forced migrations.
- the main features of the system of protection of refugees and asylum seekers.
- the basic characteristics of the Italian reception and integration system for refugees and asylum seekers.


2. Applying knowledge and understanding

By the end of the course students are expected to be able to
- properly use theoretical concepts as well as basic and specialized terminology in analysing migration processes and policies, with specific regard to forced migrations.


3. Evaluating skills

By the end of the course students are expected to
- be able to critically analyse
a) media, institutional, and political discourses about migrations;
b) policies on forced migrations and the role of public and private actors.
- be able to identify discriminations and arbitrary use of power within reception and integration policies for refugees and asylum seekers.


4. Communication skills

By the end of the course students are expected to have improved their ability to
- communicate the changes of migration processes and policies, with specific regard to forced migrations, and stress their critical phases and crucial moments through a correct terminology:
- interacting with other students: discussing about the issues of the course.
- giving a presentation to the class about a work group (not mandatory).


5. Learning skills

By the end of the course students are expected to have learnt how to
- critically use textbooks (and their references).
- critically analyse data and documents coming from public institutions and private organisations.
- use other materials uploaded on moodles: this is important for making connections among different approaches and different contexts.

Students should basically know the dynamics of migrations and the main international and national migration policies as well as the Italian welfare system. Moreover, they should properly use the sociological terminology.

The course aims at deepening legal and administrative issues about the procedures of entry and stay of asylum seekers, and the policies for the inclusion of refugees. A special focus will be given to the obstacles to the access to social rights at the municipal level.

One of the main goals of the course is to stress some theoretical notions:
• mechanisms of migration control
• civic stratification
• differential inclusion
• administrative borders
• population design
• residency policies

The first part of the course will be devoted to provide an historical and empirical framework of forced migrations. A critical analysis of the distinction between “economic migrants” and “refugees” will be developed.
The second part will stress the reception and integration policies for refugees and asylum seekers. A specific attention will be given to the structures in which forced migrants are located.
The third part will be focused on the role of municipal actors in the inclusion (or exclusion) of refugees and asylum seekers. The procedures of enrollment to the registry office, as well as the strategies aiming to exclude from registration, will be analysed in detail.

Mandatory texts:

1. AA.VV., Il diritto di asilo tra accoglienza e esclusione, Edizioni dell'Asino, Bologna, 2015

(the book can be downloaded for free at the following address: http://viedifuga.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Diritto-asilo-fra-acc-e-escl-ASGI-2015.pdf ).


2. Selected articles – Gallo, Marchetti, Vitiello e Bontempelli – contained in the special issue “Profughi” (n. 86) of the journal Meridiana: https://www.viella.it/rivista/9788867287253 (the reading of other articles – Sanfilippo, Bona, Salvatici e Colucci – is not mandatory yet highly recommended).

3. Bolzoni M., Gargiulo E. e Manocchi M., The social consequences of the denied access to housing for refugees in urban settings: the case of Turin, Italy, in «International Journal of Housing Policy», 2015 (doi: 10.1080/14616718.2015.1053337); Gargiulo E., The limits of local citizenship: administrative borders within the Italian municipalities, in «Citizenship studies», 2017; Gargiulo E., La residenza come campo di tensioni. I conflitti sull’iscrizione anagrafica e la loro rilevanza per lo studio delle migrazioni interne, in Fornasin A. et al. Per una storia della popolazione italiana del '900, Udine, Forum Editrice, 2016.


Optional Texts:

Rastello L., 2010, La frontiera addosso. Così si deportano i diritti umani, Roma-Bari, Laterza.

Students are required to undergo a written test: 3 or 4 open questions to be answered. Questions aim at testing the learning on the crucial concepts related to the main issues of the course. Some questions could ask the students to link different topics, in order to evaluate their skill in activating an overall approach and understanding related to the various themes.

The contents of this course will be mainly delivered as lectures, which explain and deepen the course described issues. However, the participation of students attending classes is highly encouraged.
In some cases, students could be asked to prepare some materials in advance and give a PowerPoint presentation in class.

Italian

written

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Poverty and inequalities" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development