Unmasking the Impact of Bureaucratic Violence

Nina Gren; Dalia Abdelhady; Martin Joormann

doi:10.25071/1920-7336.41163

Authors

Nina Gren Senior Lecturer Lund University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8929-7239
Dalia Abdelhady Department of Sociology, Lund University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9447-0390
Martin Joormann Senior Lecturer, Karlstad University https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0373-3536

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25071/1920-7336.41163

Keywords:

bureaucratic violence, refugees, forced displacement, bureaucracies

Abstract

This introductory article introduces the concept of bureaucratic violence as a partly new way of understanding and analyzing refugees’ encounters with bureaucratic structures within authorities and organizations. Violence or the threat of violence is an inevitable part of the experiences of most forcibly displaced people. In this Special Issue, we highlight how bureaucracies as social institutions, besides providing access to rights, also impact refugees in ways that are constraining, humiliating, soul-killing and, sometimes, life-threatening. We present the theoretical underpinnings of the term bureaucratic violence and, thus, the conceptual framework that connects the different case studies included.

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Author Biographies

Nina Gren, Senior Lecturer Lund University

Nina Gren is a Senior Lecturer in Social Anthropology at Lund University. She can be reached at nina.gren@soc.lu.se.

Dalia Abdelhady, Department of Sociology, Lund University

Dalia Abdelhady is an Associate Professor at the Department of Sociology, Lund University. She can be reached at dalia.abdelhady@soc.lu.se.

Martin Joormann, Senior Lecturer, Karlstad University

Martin Joormann is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Social and Psychological Studies, Karlstad University. He can be reached at martin.joormann@kau.se.

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