A Scientific Initiative on/for Border Abolitionism

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Nodes 30 / 31 / 32 - Caravan

Work in progress

Countries:
Italy, Greece
Nodes:
Lampedusa, Samos and Kos
Start date:
05/2025
End date:
09/2025
Researchers:
E. Fravega, R. Ghaffari, L. Korukmez and L. Queirolo Palmas
With the participation of: S. Potot (University of Nice), L. Giliberti (University of Parma) and Efrosini Plexousaki (Aegean University)
Title:
Sea Battlegrounds for Solidarity
Abstract:
This caravan will explore, through participatory methodology and volunteering, how states act in two key areas of border enforcement and transgression: the central Mediterranean route and the corridor between Greece and Turkey. Lampedusa, Samos, and Kos will be considered as the main nodes and backstage areas of both solidarity and state-driven hostility.
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Node 21 - Experimental

Ended

Location:
Libya - Tripoli
Start date:
10/2024
End date:
12/2024
Researchers:
P. Cuttitta
Title:
Informal (micro-)solidarity in Libya
Abstract:
The research explores expressions of informal (micro-)solidarity among and towards people on the move in Libya (from mutual help within migrant groups to unexpected gestures from external actors) and asks how these acts may positively impact on migrants’ route-making.
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Node 18 - Caravan

Ended

Countries:
Greece
Nodes:
Lesvos
Start date:
10/2024
End date:
12/2024
Researchers:
R. Ghaffari, E. Zampa (photographer)
Title:
Solidarity and Self-Care Among Migrant Women in Greece
Abstract:
The report, "Ain't I a Woman? Iranian and Afghan Women's Underground Solidarity Networks and Practices in Lesvos", authored by Rassa Ghaffari, examines the experiences, challenges, and strategies of Iranian and Afghan women navigating unauthorized migration to Europe through Lesvos, Greece. Conducted between October and December 2024, the research employs a feminist and postcolonial lens to explore gendered dimensions of migration, focusing on self-organization, solidarity networks, and the intersectionality of oppression faced by women on the move.
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Node 19 - Caravan

Ended

Countries:
Tunisia, Libya
Nodes:
Tunisia-Libyan border
Start date:
09/2024
End date:
02/2025
Researchers:
F. Torre, L. Queirolo Palmas, Commissioned Artists: The Routes Journal
Title:
Solidarity against pushbacks across Tunisia, Libya, Algeria
Abstract:
Since starting fieldwork in the Maghreb, we have encountered many people on the move who are victims of pushbacks from Tunisia to Libya and Algeria, and from Algeria to Niger. These movements highlight severe human rights violations by state authorities and generate new itineraries and shelters, resisting forced mobility. Our research aims to document the effectiveness of pushback operations and understand how solidarity among people on the move creates routes of resistance against deportations, contributing to unauthorized mobility.
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Node 43 - Antenna

Ended

Location:
Morocco
Start date:
05/2024
End date:
02/2025
Researchers:
M. Lovato
Title:
Solidarity and oppression in the border area of Oujda
Abstract:
This report presents the findings of the fourth node of the Morocco Antenna of the SOLROUTES project, conducted in Oujda between May 2024 and February 2025. The study explores the complex dynamics between solidarity practices, border apparatus, and migration in the highly militarized border area between Morocco and Algeria.
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Nodes 22 / 23 / 24 / 25 / 26 / 27 - Caravan

Ended

Countries:
Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania
Nodes:
El Hierro, Mbera, Mbour, Kafountine, Banjul, Cap Skirring
Start date:
10/2024
End date:
03/2025
Researchers:
L. Queirolo Palmas (researcher), F. Rahola (researcher), J. Gonzalez Morandi (film – maker), G. Kouagang (associated cultural mediator – La Comunità), V. Pellegrino (associated researcher - University of Parma), Ornella Brauci (associated researcher - El Taller)
Title:
Migrations, Solidarities and Routes (Un)Making in the Atlantic Sahara (2&3 Station)
Abstract:
This Caravan further explores and deepens the findings of the previous one by focusing on the implications of the artisanal fishing crisis for coastal communities and migration places of departure in several West African countries. It highlights the religious and familial dimensions that foster solidarity around undocumented migration. Additionally, this Caravan investigates the forms of institutional solidarity and living conditions in refugee camps on both sides of the Atlantic route—specifically in the Canary Islands (European side) and Mauritania (African side).
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Node 20 - Experimental

Ended

Location:
Albania - Tirana
Start date:
10/2024
End date:
12/2024
Researchers:
D. Jano
Title:
Beyond Irregular Pathways: Cultural Frameworks, Solidarity Networks, and Agency in Albanian Migration to the UK
Abstract:
This node report examines Albanian irregular migration to the United Kingdom through a socio-cultural lens, challenging dominant narratives that frame irregular migration primarily within narratives of criminality and trafficking.
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Node 29 - Antenna

Ended

Location:
Morocco
Start date:
09/2024
End date:
02/2025
Researchers:
M. Lovato
Title:
Beyond absence: An ethnography of border violence struggles in Morocco.
Abstract:
This report presents the findings of the third research node of the Morocco Antenna of the SOLROUTES project, conducted between September 2024 and February 2025. The study examines how disappearances and deaths at borders generate support relationships and forms of collective mobilization in Morocco through an ethnographic approach.
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Node 48 - Caravan

Ended

Countries:
Trieste - Balkans
Nodes:
Bihac, Lipa, Padua, Trieste, Turin
Start date:
07/2024
End date:
07/2024
Researchers:
Enrico Fravega, Valeria Garrè, Andrea Ferraris (illustrator)
Title:
The SOLROUTES project join the Balkans Caravan 2024
Abstract:
As a border abolitionist research project, SOLROUTES places a strong emphasis on solidarity along migration routes in what is referred to as “EUrope at large”. SolRoutes’ participation in the Balkans Caravan 2024 is a critical component of the ethnographic fieldwork activities conducted in the Balkans area.
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Node 38 - Antenna

Ended

Location:
Turkey - Istanbul
Start date:
03/2024
End date:
12/2024
Researchers:
L. Körükmez
Title:
Religion and Solidarity: Faith-Based Support for Refugees in Turkey
Abstract:
This study investigates the dynamics of refugee solidarity among Islamic communities in Istanbul, focusing on the Fatih district. Drawing on fieldwork and qualitative analysis, it explores how religious beliefs, Islamic discourse, and state-promoted notions of “Islamic brotherhood” shape practices of solidarity toward refugees. The findings demonstrate that while faith-based motivations enable acts of solidarity, such support is often hierarchical, conditional, and influenced by political, economic, and cultural factors. Shared religious identity does not necessarily guarantee equitable access or genuine inclusion within mosque communities and other Islamic spaces.
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