(De)constructing 'refugeeness' : exploring mediated discourses of solidarity, welcome and refugee (self)representation in New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
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Date
2019
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Massey University
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Abstract
The tragic photo of Alan Kurdi ignited protests of solidarity and compassion across
the Western world in support of refugees. In New Zealand, refugee advocates and
media commentators urged the government to increase the refugee quota and
welcome in more refugees. Although discourses of solidarity and welcome stem
from humanitarian concern, they also risk encouraging a regime of compassion and
charity that speaks more about ourselves and how we feel. Refugees are framed as
objects of ‘our’ moral responsibility, stereotyped as helpless vulnerable victims
without agency. These discourses consequently produce a generic type of refugee –
an imagining of ‘refugeeness’ – that consigns individuals to an anonymous presence,
silenced and marginalised by the very act of solidarity and protest that is performed
on their behalf.
Situated within a post-development and post-humanitarianism paradigm, and an
actor-oriented approach to discourse and agency, this research aims to explore
refugee representation and discourses of solidarity and welcome in the New
Zealand mainstream media, and how people from refugee backgrounds experience
and contest dominant discourses of ‘refugeeness’. Using critical discourse analysis,
this research critically examines the discursive constructions of refugees and
solidarity in the New Zealand mainstream news media, and the power dynamics
involved in the production of discourse. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews with
refugee advocates and former refugees are employed to create spaces for
participants to share their stories and experiences, enabling voices to be heard,
misconceptions to be challenged, and new meanings to be constructed.
The emergence of themes in this research highlight the relationship between
discourses of solidarity, humanitarianism, and imaginings of New Zealand national
identity. Within these discourses, refugees are stereotyped in a particular way that
calls on the New Zealand public to respond. However, as the title of this thesis
suggest, meaning is not infinitely fixed. Refugees may be labelled by discursive
structures, but they will also use their agency to deconstruct and redefine the
refugee label for their own ends, creating space for the construction of their own
identities in the process.
Description
Listed in 2019 Dean's List of Exceptional Theses
Keywords
Refugees, New Zealand, Press coverage, Mass media and immigrants, Identity (Psychology) and mass media, Discourse analysis, Power (Social sciences), Dean's List of Exceptional Theses