Un-Welcome to Denmark: The Paradigm Shift and Refugee Integration

(Hardback)

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Un-welcome to Denmark, by Michelle Pace with Sarah El-Abd, critically assesses Denmark's migration regime by directly engaging the voices of multiple stakeholders impacted by its harshness. It puts forward the theory of the 'unwelcome migrant' by undertaking an extensive analysis of the programmatic and legal foundations for the 'undeserving migrant' as well as of the lived experiences of Syrian refugees, welfare professionals and private businesses tasked with supporting them. It thereby documents the ways in which the Danish migration gaze produces and perpetuates the hyper precarity of the everyday lives of Syrians and the anxiety that overshadows the manner in which Syrians and those who support them navigate its maze. By so doing, it traces how a once admired, liberal, tolerant and open society with a strong reverence for human rights has turned into one of the harshest migration regimes in Europe, if not internationally.

Reviews

'This brilliant and thought-provoking book explodes the myth of Denmark as a happy, liberal and welcoming society for migrants and refugees. Like several other Western countries, but more than most, Denmark has seen a paradigm shift in policies on the acceptance and integration of outsiders. Based on in-depth interviews with Syrian migrants and a variety of key interlocutors, Michelle Pace, with Sarah El-Abd, forensically exposes the tensions, illogicalities and injustices in Denmarks racist, illiberal, exclusionary and assimilationist policies towards asylum-seekers and refugees. Written from the perspective of critical migration studies, Un-Welcome to Denmark is a must-read for scholars, students and policy-makers.'
Professor Russell King, Emeritus Professor (Geography), University of Sussex

'Michelle Paces book UN-WELCOME TO DENMARK is a solid scientific analysis framed through the authors very critical view on present-day Danish refugee policy. Whatever your own views, it is worth reading this book to get a nuanced grasp of the realities and the human consequences of not least - the so called paradigm shift.'
Mogens Lykketoft, former Danish minister of foreign affairs, speaker of the Danish parliament and president of the UN General Assembly

'The best account to date of how Denmark got lost in the horrifying darkness of the punishing ethno-nationalist forest with the chilling stench of racism. A must read.' Professor Dimitry Kochenov Yaroslavsky, Lead Researcher, Rule of Law Group, Central European University

'An essential and bold contribution to the often-overlooked debate on racism and xenophobia in Denmarks immigration and integration policies. Michelle Pace, together with Sarah El-Abd, skillfully exposes Denmarks systemic Othering of non-Western migrants while also highlighting the crucial role of welfare professionals and private stakeholders in the process of repair. By amplifying the voices of multiple stakeholders, including Syrian refugees, this book compellingly reveals both the dark and hopeful sides of asylum and migration in Denmark: a must-read for anyone willing to look beyond the clich of Denmark as merely Borgen, happiness, and social equality.' Sarah Ganty, Doctor of the Science of Law (J.S.D.) program, Yale Law School

'As a scholar working on the geopolitics of migration, I found Un-welcome to Denmark: The Paradigm Shift and Refugee Integration to be both timely and deeply resonant. Michelle Pace (with Sarah El-Abd) offers a compelling, methodologically rich examination of how a liberal welfare state has come to embed exclusionary logics into the very structures of integration. The books central concept of the un-welcome migrant provides a powerful analytical lens through which to understand the disjuncture between professed liberal values and the lived realities of asylum seekers. Drawing on over a decade of fieldwork and sustained engagement with Syrian refugees and Danish institutions, the author uncovers how securitisation, surveillance, and conditionality are quietly reshaping the European migration landscape. This is an essential contribution to the study of migration governance, welfare politics, and the erosion of liberal norms. It deserves a wide readership across political science, sociology, and Middle East studies.' Professor Gerasimos Tsourapas, Professor of International Relations, University of Glasgow

'This book provides a compelling, lucid, and powerful account of how Denmark has shaped its politics of asylum and migration through various discursive practices, everyday narratives, and policies. By developing the theory of the Unwelcome Migrant and drawing on rich conceptual and ethnographic work, it offers valuable insights not only for those interested in Danish asylum policies but also for those seeking to understand the dynamics of exclusion and inclusion that define the global refugee regime.' Tamirace Fakhoury, Associate Professor of International Politics and Conflict, The Fletcher School, Tufts University

Author Bio

Michelle Pace is Professor in Global Studies at Roskilde University.