Equinox Initiative for Racial Justice, Greek Forum of Migrants and International Women* Space are building a Migrant Justice Community of Practice: a coalition of migrant-led organisations working to shift European migration approaches away from punishment, violence and control toward community, care and social provision.
In a climate of growing far-right, anti-migrant political power across Europe, migrant and racialised communities are increasingly vilified, criminalised and scapegoated for a range of social problems.
We are seeing the hardening of punitive, criminalising and discriminatory migration laws and policies, as well as an increase in legislation, resources and infrastructure that militarises borders and European migration policy.
We want to see resources, legislation and policy used to protect people’s lives rather than support systems of punishment, containment and control. We need an alternative force that centres the needs, goals and approaches of grassroots migrant activism.
Building beyond punitive migration strategy
We are building a translocal coalition of grassroots groups working collectively to shift power in European migration approaches. The coalition seeks to bring together organisations working to redistribute resources and power away from punitive institutions and toward social provision and community care. We focus on building power amongst migrant and racialised-led justice organisations who are commonly under-funded and excluded from decision-making processes.
The coalition includes:
- Migrant Justice Community of Practice: a space for migrant and racialised people-led organisations to meet, build power and discuss strategies for building beyond punitive migration control. The Migrant Justice COP will meet on a monthly basis.
- Migration solidarity group: a group of organisations working to open up strategic spaces and corridors of power to the Community of Practice, so that political agendas and strategies to combat criminalisation can be collectively shaped. The solidarity group will support and work in solidarity with migrant-led organisations, more effectively coordinating and using resources to achieve structural change.
Our Goals
- Shift power in political activism toward migrant led and racialised organisations
- Work toward an alternative migration system based on care and protection
- Change how EU resources, laws and policies engage with the topic of criminalisation, surveillance, punishment and control
Who we are
The Community of Practice is coordinated by Equinox Initiative for Racial Justice, the Greek Forum of Migrants, and International Women* Space.
Jennifer Kamau
Jennifer Kamau is a Berlin-based activist and researcher. She is one of the initiators of the International Women* Space, a feminist, anti-racist political group in Berlin with refugee and migrant women* and non-migrant women* as members. This network emerged from the “famous” occupation of the Oranienplatz in Berlin-Kreuzberg some years ago, as a feminist response to the predominantly male concerns of the insurgent refugees.
Adla Shashati
Adla Shashati originates both from Sudan and Greece. She is a journalist with a degree in Media and Cultural Studies and an M.A. in New Media Technologies. She is a member of the Sudanese Community in Greece and the director of the Greek Forum of Migrants.
Sarah Chander
Sarah Chander is Director and co-founder of Equinox Initiative for Racial Justice. In the past, she has organised European grassroots movements on racial justice, digital, migration, feminism and LGBT rights.
Get involved
Migrant or racialised-led organisations with abolitionist and feminist approaches to migrant justice work are welcome to join our Migrant Justice Community of Practice. In particular we are centering those working at the intersection of various forms of oppression (including womens’ rights, sex workers, queer and trans issues, persons with disabilities);
Mainstream migration policy organisations working on EU or national migration policies are welcome to join the migration solidarity group.
If you are interested in finding out more about the Community of Practice or supporting our work, please contact migrantjusticecop@protonmail.com
Background
The Migrant Justice COP stems from an initial project between Equinox and the Greek Forum of Migrants, supported by the European Philanthropic Initiative for Migration, gathering organisations working at the intersection of structural racism and migration. That project conducted an initial scoping review of organisations and collectives working to build beyond punitive migration policy and toward other methods.
Since, Equinox, the Greek Forum of Migrants and International Women* Space Berlin came together to build the migrant justice community of practice, supported by the Allianz Foundation.