Borders & Belonging
Migration is a complex phenomenon – for individuals, it is a personal journey that can result in struggle or triumph depending on life circumstances; and for countries, it can be an economic driver, or a source of social tension or even conflict.
Host Maggie Perzyna, a researcher with the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Migration and Integration program at Toronto Metropolitan University, explores the complexity of migration with the help of leading academics and professionals working with migrants on the ground.
In Season 1, Maggie debunks some of the biggest myths about migration. We’re proud to say the work received a 2023 Silver Signal Award. In Season 2, Maggie takes listeners on a world tour, asking questions like “What fuels xenophobia in South Africa?", "Is Japan becoming a migration state?" and “How is technology changing the places where people work and the countries trying to attract them?”
In Season 3, Maggie continues her mission, this time zooming in on the key questions being asked by migration scholars. Can sanctuary cities inspire innovative approaches to migrant and refugee urban integration? How can we put the principle, “nothing about us without us” into practice? And what does it mean to decentre migration research?
For show notes and transcripts, visit: https://www.torontomu.ca/cerc-migration/borders-and-belonging/
2023 and 2024 Silver Signal Award Winner
Borders & Belonging
Why is xenophobia so entrenched in South Africa?
In contrast to the late Desmond Tutu's hopeful aspirations for the "rainbow nation" and his efforts to champion human rights, post-apartheid South Africa has been marked by xenophobic violence, adding insecurities for both citizens and foreign nationals. In this episode, host Maggie Perzyna asks why xenophobia has become so entrenched across the political spectrum, and connects the dots between apartheid, economic development and the scapegoating that’s directed toward the state.
Guests: Silindile Mlilo, PhD research fellow and Project Manager at Xenowatch, African Center for Migration and Society, University of Witwatersrand; Trevor Ngwane, Director of the Center for Sociological Research and Practice, University of Johannesburg; and Loren Landau, Professor, University of Oxford and University of Witwatersrand, African Center for Migration and Society.
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🌎 Have a question or episode idea? Email bordersandbelonging@gmail.com.