Intro to Themed Series: Southern Perspectives on Border Criminologies

Guest post by Rimple Metha and Ana Aliverti. Rimple Mehta is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Social Sciences, Western Sydney University.  Ana Aliverti is Professor of Law and co-Director of the Criminal Justice Centre at the University of Warwick.  They have guest edited the special issue on ‘Southern Perspectives on Border Criminology’ in the International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy. This is the first post in the Border Criminologies 'Southern Perspectives on Border Criminology' themed series curated by Rimple Metha and Ana Aliverti. 

Border criminology scholarship has primarily focused on analyzing the border control practices of Western European and North American countries and Australia, shedding light on the evolving nature of punishment and policing in an era of heightened migration control (see Aas and Bosworth, Aliverti, Barker, Fabini). This research has deepened our comprehension of the geopolitical dynamics, politics of national criminal and migration systems and the global and social inequalities that such practices foreground and contribute to enhancing. Additionally, it has critically examined the racial technologies underlying contemporary control measures, challenging the conventional scope of criminological inquiry and emphasizing the centrality of race in understanding these practices.

However, there has been limited attention given to studying the repercussions of migration and border control policies on individuals, societies, and states in the Global South. While some research has explored post-deportation experiences and border externalization, the majority of theorization and empirical investigations have remained rooted in Northern perspectives. This not only perpetuates the notion of border control universality but also fails to consider these practices as integral components of specific neo-colonial state structures.

Furthermore, the dominant conceptual framework within border criminology often takes for granted the idea of the nation-state as the starting point, thereby hindering alternative approaches and Indigenous perspectives in understanding border controls and statecraft. In essence, border criminology, despite its valuable insights, needs to broaden its scope by exploring diverse lenses, including Indigenous knowledge, to challenge and reframe the study of Northern bureaucracies in border control. This would help in recontextualizing border control practices within the distinctive configurations of neo-colonial states and foster a more inclusive and nuanced understanding of the field.

In this special issue, the focus is on interrogating existing theorisations in border criminology and expanding the understanding of border controls and migration governance through a Southern perspective. The goal is to re-evaluate border controls and their study by exploring alternative epistemological and methodological approaches. The initiative began with a panel at the European Society of Criminology in September 2021 and expanded to include additional authors from various disciplines and case studies. We invited contributions to imagine what a ‘southern perspective’ on this field would look like. In other words, what does it entail to study and theorise border control from the South -as both a geopolitical location and as a epistemological standpoint? Many of the contributors, particularly early career researchers, have embraced postcolonial and decolonial theories, introducing fresh perspectives to border criminology.

The blog posts in this series collectively explore how borders in the Global South are conceived, constructed, negotiated, and reconfigured, considering different geopolitical, sociocultural, and economic dimensions. They offer valuable epistemological and methodological insights that challenge the predominant Northern perspectives within border criminology. This special issue aims to introduce fresh perspectives to the study of bordering and criminalization by emphasizing the significance of a Southern epistemological approach.

The posts highlight the need to explore alternative epistemologies that re-conceptualize the state's role in forming and maintaining borders. These borders are not static but evolve based on shifting perceptions of the 'other,' which may include citizens who differ ethnically, culturally, or linguistically from the majority population. With perspectives from Argentina, Mexico, Nigeria, India, Palestine and UK, the articles stress on the dynamic nature of the state and its bordering processes, often influenced by media and international organizations, leading to challenges in ensuring accountability of responsible parties. This collection underscores the importance of critical historical perspectives as well as contemporary neoliberal, neo-colonial discourse and demonstrates how migrants experience, navigate, and resist border practices, laying the groundwork for a reimagined border criminology.

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