First responders in contexts of displacement are themselves often refugees. In this, our third introductory mini blog, Dr Elena Fiddian-Qasmiyeh examines how a focus on refugee-refugee humanitarianism makes it possible to recognise and meaningfully engage with the agency of displaced populations.
Refugee-Refugee Humanitarianism
By Dr Elena Fiddian-Qasmiyeh, Southern Responses to Displacement
On-going cycles of displacement mean that refugees are increasingly experiencing what I refer to as ‘overlapping displacement’ in the sense that they often physically share spaces with other displaced people for long periods of time. Although it is often assumed that refugees are ‘hosted’ by settled national populations, first responders in contexts of displacement are in fact themselves often refugees.
Refugee-led initiatives developed in response to existing and new refugee situations directly challenge widely held (although equally widely contested) assumptions that refugees are passive victims in need of care from outsiders.
By focusing on refugee-refugee humanitarianism it is…
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