Melilla. Perspectives on a Border Town

Abstract

This special issue deals with the complex situation of Melilla as a border town that links Spain and Morocco, Europe and Africa. It addresses this subject from a historical and contemporary perspective and integrates various forms of reflection, including academic, personal, and photographic accounts. The contributions in this volume shed light on the city's historical, political, and social context, and provide insights into the everyday lives of Melilla's diverse inhabitants. They delve into the city's political history, and explore the physical and ideological transformation of the border from a zone of contact and interaction to a strict line of separation and exclusion. The chapters introduce the reader into the homes and lives of families of Rif-Berber (Tamazight) and Spanish descent as well as to the Centro de Estancia Temporal de Inmigrantes (CETI), the camp for the 'temporary' stay of (im)migrants, where refugees and migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia have been awaiting entry into mainland Europe. The contributions integrate perspectives from within and outside of the city, including the neighbouring province of Nador. They attest to the existence of multiple social and economic networks that have long crisscrossed colonial and national borders and have challenged exclusionary discourses of nationalism and identity.