Societal security and the deterrence of migrants as a means to consolidate the European Union (EU)
Date
2023-05
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Abstract
Europe's reunification has faced challenges over the past decade. Terrorist attacks in London, Paris, and Berlin; nationalist groups and anti-immigrant rhetoric in many European nations; Brexit; pro-independence movements in Scotland and Catalonia; efforts to reunite Cyprus; and, most importantly, new waves of immigration and the refugee crisis have challenged Europe's identity. European identity and membership have dominated all these scenarios. As its member states grew closer, the European Union facilitated economic, political, and social "Europeanisation," creating a “EU citizen identity" that distinguished Europeans migrating within the region from those from other regions. The study examined whether framing migration as a threat to societal security preserves and consolidates European identity or combats and consolidates fragmentation caused by rising nationalist rhetoric. The study defined European identity as community-formed through interactions, transactions, and generational changes. The study used social psychology and social identity theory, which suggests that group membership, shapes a person's self-image. Qualitative literature review and historical accounts focused on migration post-2015.
Description
A Research report submitted in fulfilment for the degree of Masters In Migration & Displacement to the African Center for Migration & Society, to the Faculty of Humanities, School of Social Sciences, at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023.
Keywords
Immigration, European Union, European Identity, Societal security, Citizenship, National identity, UCTD
Citation
Maimela, Pearl Moahlodi. (2023). Societal security and the deterrence of migrants as a means to consolidate the European Union (EU). [Master's dissertation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg]. WIReDSpace.
https://hdl.handle.net/10539/40095