Researching precarious migrations: Qualitative strategies towards a positive transformation of the politics of migration

Abstract

How can research contribute to a positive transformation of the politics of migration? This article addresses the question with reference to a recent research project, Crossing the Mediterranean Sea by Boat, which maps and documents the journeys and experiences of people on the move across the Mediterranean. It explores how qualitative research engaging research participants as people with the authority to speak can affect change by exposing claims and demands that compel ‘receiving communities’ to bear witness to the contemporary violence of policies and practices. Exploring the dissemination strategy of sharing stories through interactive maps and research–art collaboration, the article emphasises the importance of strategies that foster constructive connections between diverse constituencies. This development, the article argues, involves a process of translation that goes beyond a form of passive empathy and that works towards positive transformation of a slower duration, albeit in terms that remain discomforting.