Open Society European Policy Institute: DISCOURSES OF EXCLUSION: “PROTECTING FORTRESS EUROPE” on April 25, 2018 from 1 to 3 pm at rue du Trône 130, Brussels
The Open Society European Policy Institute is pleased to invite you to the lunch discussion with Professor RUTH WODAK on how nationalistic discourses construct the image of a dichotomic world – a world consisting of “us” versus “them” – and how the EU institutions respond to this rhetoric of exclusion.
Topics of discussion
Major tensions are governing the debate about asylum and migration policies on the European stage and in the EU member states. Refugees have been transformed into quasi-commodities being moved from one place to the other, and various scapegoats of the “migration crisis” have emerged, from EU institutions to NGOs, to migrants themselves.
Nationalistic and xenophobic politics have become part and parcel not only of the radical right-wing rhetoric but also of the political mainstream. This divisive discourse legitimizes exclusionary policies by putting the _protection _of Europe _from_ refugees and migrants at the forefront of political priorities. Dr Heather Grabbe will chair this interactive roundtable to explore with Professor Ruth Wodak and those present how these exclusionary discourses are constructed and how EU institutions have been responding.
Confirmation and information: ellen.mulder@opensocietyfoundations.org