When, Where, and Why do "Mobility Brokers" Become "Migrant Traffickers"? States, Markets, Infrastructures

Sponsors: Institute of European Studies, Pacific Regional Office of the German Historical Institute Washington

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This keynote lecture by Andreas Fahrmeir is part on an academic and policy symposium which explores migration facilitation as situated between securing borders, solidarity networks, and economic interests or needs. For more information about the sympoisum, see its program.

Whether migration needs to be facilitated depends on many factors: distance, cost, information, regulation. Aiding migrants in attaining their destination can be a well-regarded and potentially lucrative profession, or a criminalized activity – and sometimes both at once. This survey of varying attitudes and constellations, focused on European and North American examples, will try to illustrate some typical distinctions and their potential dynamics, as well as on the structural factors that shape perceptions: views of labour markets, transportation infrastructure and functions assigned to borders.