Asylum after Empire

Colonial Legacies in the Politics of Asylum Seeking

Lucy Mayblin

• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9781783486151
• eBook ISBN: 9781783486175
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: Colonialism & Post-Colonialism
• Index: Politics & International Relations

Asylum seekers are not welcome in Europe. But why is that the case? For many scholars, the policies have become more restrictive over recent decades because the asylum seekers have changed. This change is often said to be about numbers, methods of travel, and reasons for flight. In short: we are in an age of hypermobility and states cannot cope with such volumes of 'others'.

This book presents an alternative view, drawing on theoretical insights from Third World Approaches to International Law, post- and decolonial studies, and presenting new research on the context of the British Empire. The text highlights the fact that since the early 1990s, for the first time, the majority of asylum seekers originate from countries outside of Europe, countries which until 30-60 years ago were under colonial rule. Policies which address asylum seekers must, the book argues, be understood not only as part of a global hypermobile present, but within the context of colonial histories.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Information
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Chapter One Introduction
• Chapter Two The Asylum ‘Problem’
• Chapter Three Decolonising the ‘Problem’An Alternative Standpoint for Analysing the Exclusionary Politics of Asylum
• Chapter Four Slavery and the Right to Be Human
• Chapter Five Colonialism, the League of Nations and Race Equality
• Chapter Six The United Nations and the Right to Be Human
• Chapter Seven DehumanisationAsylum Seeker Support in the Twenty-First Century
• Chapter Eight Asylum after Empire
• About the Author
• References
• Index