No Borders, No Nations, No DeportationsAuthor(s): Pam AlldredSource: Feminist Review, No. 73, Exile and Asylum: Women Seeking Refuge in 'FortressEurope' (2003), pp. 152-157Published by: Palgrave Macmillan JournalsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1396006 .Accessed: 18/10/2011 08:45

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references references

Athena (2001) 'Dossier on women's studies in the Balkans' in R. Braidotti and I. Lazaroms (2001) editors, The Making of European Women's Studies, Vol. I!1, Esther Vonk, Utrecht: Athena, pp.15-85.

ECRE (1999) Kosovo-Refugees. Protection, reception, conditions and return policies in some

European Countries, 13 August 1999, http:\\www.proasyl.de/texte/europe/ecre/kosovaug.htm.

European Roma Rights Center (2000) /I paese dei campi. La segregazione dei Rom in Italia, Supplement of 'Carta', No. 12.

Dal Logo, A. (1999) Non-persone. L'esclusione dei migranti in una societd globale, Milan: Feltrinelli.

Delle Donne, M. (1995) La strada dell'oblio. Richiedenti asilo e rifugiati in Italia, Rome: Sensibili alle foglie.

doi: 10.1057/palgrave.fr. 9400088

'no borders, no nations, no deportations'

Pam Alidred

Activism from internationalist, anti-state perspectives looks to radical change

beyond reform of the law or asylum for particular individuals or families. In this, it

is distinct from campaigns against immigration legislation or legal battles over

particular deportations. One might well be active in particular anti-deportation

campaigns while questioning the legal framework as a whole and the cultural

relations it shores up. 'No Borders' is one such movement that joins an anti-racist

agenda with an anti-capitalist one, and operates as a European network, as well

as loose-knit local groups, such as the London one. July 2002 saw the latest in a

series of international border camps, this time in Strasbourg, close to France's

border with Germany. What follows is a few of my personal reflections on the camp

and our difficulties in dealing with differences among us that perhaps illustrate a

particular 'moment' in our struggle(s) towards a pan-European network of

migrants, support groups and activists. Firstly, a little of my understanding of the

politics of No Borders.

While opposing the policies of detention, dispersal, deportation and (supposed)

deterrence that characterize the UK Government's treatment of asylum seekers and

refugees, No Borders calls for direct action against immigration controls in the

name of free movement for all. It has drawn inspiration from and joined with the

campaign to close down the Campsfield Detention Centre in Oxfordshire, England;

picketed supermarkets to raise public awareness of the hated (and now

abandoned) voucher scheme that saw supermarkets keep the change from asylum

seekers' food bills; dropped multi-lingual 'welcome' banners at points of entry to

the UK and initiated actions and publications that highlight corporate profiteering

from asylum policy (eg by Lufhansa airline, Sodexo caterers). At the time of the

Prague 2000 IMF/WB meeting, a London-based group of No Borders activists were

highlighting the state's use of corporate staff to exercise control over the

Athena (2001) 'Dossier on women's studies in the Balkans' in R. Braidotti and I. Lazaroms (2001) editors, The Making of European Women's Studies, Vol. I!1, Esther Vonk, Utrecht: Athena, pp.15-85.

ECRE (1999) Kosovo-Refugees. Protection, reception, conditions and return policies in some

European Countries, 13 August 1999, http:\\www.proasyl.de/texte/europe/ecre/kosovaug.htm.

European Roma Rights Center (2000) /I paese dei campi. La segregazione dei Rom in Italia, Supplement of 'Carta', No. 12.

Dal Logo, A. (1999) Non-persone. L'esclusione dei migranti in una societd globale, Milan: Feltrinelli.

Delle Donne, M. (1995) La strada dell'oblio. Richiedenti asilo e rifugiati in Italia, Rome: Sensibili alle foglie.

doi: 10.1057/palgrave.fr. 9400088

'no borders, no nations, no deportations'

Pam Alidred

Activism from internationalist, anti-state perspectives looks to radical change

beyond reform of the law or asylum for particular individuals or families. In this, it

is distinct from campaigns against immigration legislation or legal battles over

particular deportations. One might well be active in particular anti-deportation

campaigns while questioning the legal framework as a whole and the cultural

relations it shores up. 'No Borders' is one such movement that joins an anti-racist

agenda with an anti-capitalist one, and operates as a European network, as well

as loose-knit local groups, such as the London one. July 2002 saw the latest in a

series of international border camps, this time in Strasbourg, close to France's

border with Germany. What follows is a few of my personal reflections on the camp

and our difficulties in dealing with differences among us that perhaps illustrate a

particular 'moment' in our struggle(s) towards a pan-European network of

migrants, support groups and activists. Firstly, a little of my understanding of the

politics of No Borders.

While opposing the policies of detention, dispersal, deportation and (supposed)

deterrence that characterize the UK Government's treatment of asylum seekers and

refugees, No Borders calls for direct action against immigration controls in the

name of free movement for all. It has drawn inspiration from and joined with the

campaign to close down the Campsfield Detention Centre in Oxfordshire, England;

picketed supermarkets to raise public awareness of the hated (and now

abandoned) voucher scheme that saw supermarkets keep the change from asylum

seekers' food bills; dropped multi-lingual 'welcome' banners at points of entry to

the UK and initiated actions and publications that highlight corporate profiteering

from asylum policy (eg by Lufhansa airline, Sodexo caterers). At the time of the

Prague 2000 IMF/WB meeting, a London-based group of No Borders activists were

highlighting the state's use of corporate staff to exercise control over the

152 feminist review 73 2003 dialogue 152 feminist review 73 2003 dialogue

movement of people across the same European borders that money and shares

cross unimpeded, as copies of the witty spoof, the Financial Crimes, were

distributed to city commuters. This local action, highlighting the links to inter/

national law and global processes, was in solidarity with the demonstrations in

Prague, but was, for most of us, an alternative to taking up our relatively

privileged access to travel and to gain entry on return.

An environmental and anti-imperialist analysis refuses to be silent on the role of

rich nations in creating the conflict from which people flee, and points out the

significance of (European and) British colonialism in creating contemporary

patterns of migration to places people identify as the mother country or speak the

language of. Economic conditions often result from the political decisions taken by

Western governments, the World Bank and the IMF. Anti-capitalist perspectives

refuse the distinction between economic and political refugees that allows the

tabloid newspapers their pious moral distinction between the deserving and

undeserving. The condemnation of refugees and migrants is seen as the

scapegoating of those who suffer the worst effects of the new capitalist world

order and individualization of the problem that serves to distract from the broader

economic relations at play. Migrant workers are often at the sharpest end of

exploitative work relations and deeming some of them illegal helps hide this

exploitation. Anti-state perspectives point to the limits of reliance on legal

remedies where utilitarian logic values people on the basis of their usefulness

as workers and states open and close national gates accordingly, and opt out

of European legislation 'in the national interest'. Berlusconi showed this by

suspending the Schengen Convention on free movement inside the EU to restrict

activists joining the European Social Forum in Florence in November 2002. Certain

groups get differential access, for example the white Zimbabwean farmers

(descendents of those who emigrated for economic reasons to exploit African

resources) were 'fast-tracked' past the backlog of UK asylum claims.

The international bordercamp was initiated to allow refugees, migrants and

undocumented migrants, such as the 'Sans Papiers' in France, and members of

support/campaign groups from across Europe to forge new alliances and

strengthen solidarities in a 'ten-day laboratory of creative resistance and civil

disobedience'. Since the first 'kein Mensch ist illegal' bordercamp in 1998, and the

EU migration summit in Tampere, Finland in 1999, where synchronized opposition to

the European project of exclusion took place in 8 EU countries, there have been

at least five camps in different parts of Europe, at external borders: 'physical

interventions in the brutal border regime of Fortress Europe'; and at internal or

virtual borders in airports and stations. The network aims 'not only to criticize, but

to create Europe-wide structures for practical and effective resistance' and uses

mailing lists, web-magazines and radio to spread the practical politics behind

slogans like No one Is Illegal and Freedom of Movement for All. As repression is

harmonized across European territory, it becomes more important to share tactics

dialogue feminist review 73 2003 153

of survival and resistance and make links between the points of resistance in both

the fight for the rights of migrants here and in supporting struggles for justice in

their countries of origin. The Strasbourg camp brought together activists from

France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Italy, the UK, Finland and the USA, and was part

of a chain of bordercamps in Woomera (Australia), Mexico, Poland, Slovenia,

Germany and Finland.

The location and timing of the camp were significant. Strasbourg, having switched

five times between French and German rule in the last 400 years, illustrates the

historically constructed nature of the national border, and the monuments to

Resistance fighters killed there 60 years ago, reminded us of its bloody and

conflictual history. Today, it symbolizes the EU, since, like the capital of Europe,

it houses the European Court of Human Rights and the EU Parliament. However,

it marks the shift from physical, territorial borders to an omnipresent, perpetual

system of control by housing the Schengen Information System (SIS), the

pan-European database to control migrants, protesters and other perceived

threats to public order, a centre-piece of the EU border regime. Its timing was

notably not set by the summit schedule. Instead it was an autonomous event

seeking sustainable alternatives not just angry responses to the established order;

the organizers did not see themselves as rallying 'the good guys' against the 'bad

guys' or constructing objects of hate.

A reminder of the significance of the national border I was within came from my

hasty attempt to understand the policing and legal context. French activists had

provided a useful briefing on the website about the various types of French police

and their different powers and tactics, warning that the non-uniformed ones were

the most aggressive and dangerous, but I was shocked that the French police fired

tear-gas and charged the crowd without issuing a warning or even prior

instructions. The French lawyers on site were similarly appalled by the first use in

Europe of 'flash balls' - big rubber bullets that are supposed to be fired at the

ground only. One fired directly at a French protester broke his leg and could

apparently have given him very serious injuries indeed.

Trying to map the political culture proved equally ambiguous. When I arrived,

UK activists already there were struck by the low-key policing of a large

demonstration, and interpreted this as a reflection of the liberty to express oneself

enshrined in French culture, where graffiti was read (and written) politically and

passersby shared their opinions with protestors. They were inspired by the strong

sense of collectivity amongst the crowd, taking care of the most vulnerable, not

letting the police pick off individuals, surrounding someone who'd been hit or was

badly affected by tear-gas. However, the 3-day regional ban on demonstrating or

congregating in small groups in the town centre that Jacques Chirac imposed, had

never been used before and shocked the French; it also temporarily turned one of

the chants into 'No Borders, No Nations, No Demonstrations'.

154 feminist review 73 2003 dialogue

The camp was organized according to a barrio structure, where groups of 30-60

people formed camps, each with their own kitchen, at which they held daily

meetings, and organized maintaining their water supply and nearest compost loos.

The Black and Silver barrio was cleverly named, I thought, to stem the construction

of an opposition between 'Pink and Silver' (tactical frivolity or samba) and harder

'Black Block' tactics. It was less diverse than other barrios though, comprising

mostly London-based activists, of whom many of us already knew each other, and

operating in English almost the whole time. All the workshops and meetings were

conducted with translations into at least two languages, with which languages and who would translate being agreed at the start and microphones passed

accordingly. People were encouraged to speak in their first language and let the

highly proficient translators maintain their role, and although a few of the British

people I knew turned out to be fluent in another language or two, the multilingual

fluency of many of the French, German and Italian activists, as usual, put most

of us with English as our mother-tongue to shame. I was also impressed by the

discipline and patience shown for potentially unwieldy meeting sizes and structures

and came away appreciating how the time taken by multiple translations lead to

carefully considered, rather than impulsive, cathartic contributions.

Differences in tactics did emerge, however, and perhaps unsurprisingly, so did

different expectations of the camp. As the organizers pointed to the value of the

camp itself for networking, discussing and organizing, some felt they had not

travelled to the site of the institutions of the super-state to focus solely

internally, and in some quarters anxiety mounted about how symbolic or how

ambitious the planned action against the SIS would be. The police repression, their

incursions into the (agreed) site and the refusal of bail to one arrestee, a

Moroccan man, fed a growing counter-summit dynamic by providing a defined

enemy and raising the level of conflict. This hardened resolve to assemble for an

action or mass protest on the Saturday, the grand commercial 'market' day that the ban seemed designed to protect. Even though some of the plans were for

creative actions using street theatre or samba, the underlying dynamic seemed to be a defiant, ego-based urge to confirm our own identities and ability to act. One

commentary later criticized the patriarchal pattern this logic produced, devaluing the reproductive work of the camp (cooking, building and childcare) and valorizing the macho actions 'out there' that required the courage, muscles and testosterone

(El Desaparecido, 16th August 2002).

While renewed impetus behind communicating with the local community came later

from the desire to challenge some of the negative coverage of the camp in the French press and to improve our safety, given the fear of attack by the German neo-Nazis who shouted 'Judes', 'Communists' and 'Gypsies' from the other bank of the river, some activists wanted to go into the banlieues (the 'suburbs') and make links with the disaffected young people in the immigrant communities

concentrated there. Some of the Strasbourgers in the camp were long-time

dialogue feminist review 73 2003 155

activists and community workers in the banlieues, and cautioned against any

actions that might draw police attention to the banlieues. They highlighted the

long time it had taken those of them who were white and nonmigrants to gain the

trust of the very marginalized. The Mouvement de I'lmmigration et des Banlieues

(MIB) sees the relationship between the French state and the banlieues as one of

ongoing colonial relations, and while it welcomed the Strasbourg camp (and the

one immediately before it in Jena which succeeded in attracting equal numbers of

migrants and 'activists') as bringing migrants and 'activists' together, it was

disappointing to hear that one MIB felt that 'people with a foreign look were

directed to us. It was a bit odd to see that the MIB stall was considered a

consulate for migrants/Sans papiers within the camp'. The unquashable drive to

have a samba 'action' and the very specific nature of local politics and

relationships made me worry that a bunch of mostly white activists would stir up

the Strasbourg police and then leave town. I was unpopular for asking if we were

simply importing political tactics to a (geo-political) space we knew little about.

Samba rhythms have already crossed continents of geo-political space, of course,

but it was a relief that, in the end, the samba action that went ahead was in the

town-centre and was reportedly a good action, or at least a joyful and defiant

event.

Over a series of meetings, a joint statement of demands shared by the different

groups was produced. It was agreed in French and German, and I merely worked on

the final drafts of the English version. I knew that translation was not as straight-

forward as is sometimes implied, but the amount of political debate generated in

agreeing nuances of translation within a small multi-lingual subgroup was

insightful for me.

Many of the demands work at a pan-European level and within different national

contexts (e.g. for freedom of movement, defence of the right to asylum, an end to

all deportation and the closure of all detention centres and freedom of those

imprisoned). Others speak to more specific legal contexts, but have broad

resonance in terms of the tone of governmental responses they reveal: an end to

precarious and short-term legal permits; removal of conditions on permission to

stay (such as a contract for work); abolition of the double penalty (as in Belgium

and France); an end to the dispersal system and any restrictions on residency (as

in Germany); and the unconditional legalization of the Sans Papier (undocumented

people). Since Sans Papiers is a hugely significant, self-organized migrants'

movement in France and evidenced the camp's orientation to grass-roots

organizations, it was hard to translate in a way that spoke equally powerfully to an

English-speaking audience to whom being 'without papers' is not politicized but

specific legal persons, 'asylum seekers', are highly politicized, indeed vilified, and

so political responses seek to validate this term. The term 'asylum seeker' is far

more specific, and risks accepting the presumption of the moral distinction

between economic migrants and those seeking political asylum. While referring to

156 feminist review 73 2003 dialogue

'migrants' broadened the focus beyond that created by the UK legal system, and

using 'Sans Papiers' was advocated as a way of promoting and linking politicized

grass-roots resistance, these terms limit the statement's accessibility to UK

audiences and its engagement with the specific cultural politics of the debate in

the UK.

My final lesson on the difficulty of seeking pan-European political positions,

indeed global ones, was when, in a rousing final sentence of the statement, there

is an appeal to unite as 'citizens of the world'. Whilst at one level, the solidarities

this forges between movements as diverse as the Zapatistas, Singaporean

sweatshop workers and sacked Liverpool dockers worked for me and the other

British activists around, at another level, in our national context 'citizen' had been

co-opted by politically conservative and legalistic use. So I struggled to find a

form of expression that wrestled 'the citizen' out of the jaws of the Home

Secretary, David Blunkett, intent on making proficiency in English and knowledge

of British culture requirements of British citizenship. Instead of either tearing down

the SIS or networking with French activists, I was at a computer screen in the

mobile independent media unit broadening and narrowing the terms of my debate.

Quotations are from the EUROPE 1:1 Information Map, 'your Strasbourg Journey

Planner', published by 'Civilised Countries'.

El Desaparecido (16th August 2002) 'After Strasbourg, Before Leiden', A-INFOs

NEWS SERVICE.

European no border network: www.noborder.org

Schengen Information System: www.statewatch.org

Campaign against Campsfield Detention Centre: www.closecampsfield.org.uk

Barbed Wire Britain: www.barbedwirebritain.org.uk

Mouvement Immigration Banlieue (MIB): http://mibmib.free.fr/

Kein Mensch ist illegal: www.contrast.org/borders/kein/

author biography

Pam Alldred is a London-based academic and activist. She teaches Education and

Childhood Studies at the University of Greenwich, and is a memeber of the Feminist

Review Collective.

doi: 10.1057/palgrave.fr. 9400089

dialogue feminist review 73 2003 157