The book gathers critical responses to the representations of migrants in the media in Europe through nine essays by prominent writers, artists and journalists.
The starting point is the assertion that migrants have entered European countries, but they haven’t entered the public sphere. When they do, it is as characters in other people’s stories as something other. They are spoken about, but rarely asked. Pointed at, but rarely heard. Decided for, but rarely involved. We hardly ever hear from young migrants as legitimate voices. If migrants and refugees are to become fully recognized citizens of Europe, we believe they need to be participants in—rather than subjects of—the public debate.
About the speakers:
Moha Gerehou is a journalist at eldiario.es and an activist at Federacion SOS Racismo in Spain. He works in a number of areas related to anti-racism, with a special focus on the media. His works, through articles and videos, are published in various magazines and online. He also has developed ‘If I were a black character in a movie’, a show about the representation of black people in films, TV series, advertisements and photography.
Nesrine Malik is a British-Sudanese columnist and features writer for the Guardian. She was born in Sudan and grew up in Kenya, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. She received her undergraduate education at the American University in Cairo and University of Khartoum, and her post graduate education at the University of London. Before her career as a journalist, she spent ten years in emerging markets private equity. She was named Society & Diversity Commentator of the Year at the 2017 Comment Awards.
Daniel Trilling is a journalist and editor of New Humanist magazine. He writes about migration, borders, and nationalism for several publications, including the Guardian, London Review of Books and The New York Times. Recent books include: Lights in the Distance: Exile and Refuge at the Borders of Europe (2018) and Bloody Nasty People: The Rise of Britain’s Far Right (2012).
Crystal Genesis, journalist and curator, moderates the event. She runs the independent award-winning arts and culture podcast STANCE. She leads on creating courses, workshops and performance programmes for young people at Southbank Centre, London. Previously, Chrystal worked at the BBC.