Thematic Focus: Terminology

A number of recent reports and studies have focused on the terminology used to describe and categorize the people currently moving across borders. Here is a sampling:

Call Me Illegal: The Semantic Struggle over Seeking Asylum in Australia (Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, 2015) [text]

*Debates over Language: A Dangerous Distraction? (IRIN, Aug. 2015) [text]

Factbox: Refugee, Asylum Seeker, Migrant - What's the Difference? (Thomson Reuters Foundation, Aug. 2015) [text]

"From 'Swarm' to 'Illegal': Dissecting How We Talk about Migrants," CBC's The Current, 10 Aug. 2015 [access via RSC]

"Is It Time to Ditch the Word 'Migrant'?," Washington Post, 24 Aug. 2015) [text]

*"The Labeling Problem in Southeast Asia's Refugee Crisis," The Diplomat Magazine, 12 Aug. 2015 [text]

*"Mediterranean Flows into Europe: Refugees or Migrants?," IEMed Mediterranean Yearbook 2015 [full-text]

"The Readers' Editor on… the Semantics of Migration," The Guardian, 16 Aug. 2015 [text]

*Refugees are Also Migrants. And All Migrants Matter (Border Criminologies Blog, Sept. 2015) [text]

UNHCR Viewpoint: 'Refugee' or 'Migrant' - Which is Right? (UNHCR, Aug. 2015) [text]

When to Use the M-word (IRIN, Aug. 2015) [text]

*Why Al Jazeera Will Not Say Mediterranean "Migrants" (Al Jazeera Editor's Blog, Aug. 2015) [text]
- See also reactions to Al Jazeera's decision here and here.

"Why the Language We Use to Talk about Refugees Matters so Much," Washington Post, 30 July 2015 [text]

This type of discussion is not necessarily new.  The labels and definitions used in the forced migration context have always been and will continue to be a regular topic for debate. See, e.g., this recent post for references on how to distinguish between "trafficking and smuggling."  This post from Jan. 2014 focused on how migrants are portrayed in the media.  Also last year, PICUM launched a campaign to promote the use of more accurate and humane terminology while PANOS Europe released a "Media Friendly Glossary on Migration."  Growing concern about climate change has likewise led to discussions of appropriate terms to describe those who are ultimately displaced.

*UPDATED

Tagged Publications.