The image of immigrants as "others" and deviants

In: Stefanovska, Vesna and Gogov, Bogdanco (2018) The image of immigrants as "others" and deviants. Migrant and Refugee Crisis in a Globalized World: Responsibilities and Responses, conference proceedings. pp. 169-182.

Abstract

Discussion about the criminality of immigrants is rising due to the high mobility of people. Today, the deviant immigrant is a topic in political and media discourse in most Western European countries. Smuggling immigrants, Muslim terrorists, women who are prostituted from eastern European countries, juvenile gangs of ethnic origin are images of foreign criminals. In this direction, the policy towards foreign deviants is changing. Instead of protectionism and protection, now the dominant themes are security and protection from assumed foreign risks. The image of the deviant immigrant opens up the racist discourse, as well. Racist notions are not primarily focused on the perceived biological inferiority of the other, but on the security threat that he/she represents in the community. Hence, the penal discourse on immigrant crime or the demands for the punishment of immigrants is seen as a protection of nationality and national interests from threatening foreign elements. This means that public attitudes towards immigrants and immigrant crime are also shaped by the generally punitive climate in late-modern societies. We can therefore agree that migration issues are increasingly defined as security issues that are treated by the penal system, while refugees and asylum seekers become security rather than a humanitarian issue. The above issues are special subject of elaboration and analysis within this article.