Our speakers will shed light on occluded realities at the borders of non-EU and EU states, and between Mexico and the United States. Dr. Polly Pallister-Wilkins will present insights from her recently published book on humanitarian responses to border violence and immigration restriction, based on eight years of research with NGO activists, professional humanitarian agencies, EU officials, and border police. Nicola Moscelli will showcase the surveillance imagery, poetry, essays, and interviews that make up his recently published photobook on the Mexico-US border. Drawing on their respective disciplines of political geography and photography, Pallister-Wilkins and Moscelli will speak to common issues of colonial history, human vulnerabilities, and the intended—and unintended—consequences of inaction and reaction to migration crises.  

This programme is organised by the America in the World research group, which is a part of the Amsterdam School of Historical Studies.