Why are we so scared and confused by migration?
- Text by HUCK HQ
What separates the eighty million people that arrive in Heathrow every year from the one million refugees trying to access asylum in the EU?
That’s the question that kicks off the latest episode of The Glass Bead Game podcast. Asylum Island: The Meaning Of Migration is centred around Chios, a small island between Turkey and the Greek mainland that physically embodies a political division between Europe and the rest of the world. Through the testimony of those that live there and those who arrive seeking asylum, the episode considers the wider phenomena of migration along with its shifting moral and legal status.
Migration is one of the most hotly-contested and politicised terms of today. But when only 3% of the world’s population are international migrants, is it really worth all the drama and disagreement? Through conversations with Tula, a hotel owner in Chios, and Bassam, a Syrian refugee volunteer, the episode seeks to explore why migration is such a polarising and emotive issue, shine a light on its many complexities and put some migration myths to rest – with help from the University of Sussex’s Professor of Geography Michael Collyer and Paul Statham from the Centre for Migration Studies.
Find out more about the The Glass Bead Game podcast.
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