The Foreigner in the European Socio-legal Culture: from the past to the present day

An Aurora Virtual Serie Lectures from 7 October - 11 November 202

Where: ZOOM Click here to join

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The event focuses on the role of higher education in cultural and socio-legal processes of inclusion and the fight against social inequality.

It aims to promote awareness-raising around migration topics, engage universities in critical discussions, and commit to teaching equality, diversity, inclusion and creating concrete practices. These are the legal and political framework premises to respond promptly and effectively to the migration phenomenon.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes that migration contributes to sustainable development for migrants and their communities. Those benefits concern what migrants can bring to any given territory, and the socio-political background of potential destination countries will affect how, where, and when migration occurs.

Universities have a crucial responsibility in driving human development, knowledge sharing, and social innovation and equip students with the related knowledge, skills, and values to address those complex challenges.

History has revealed various models for defining foreign people recalling concepts such as the dominant language, hospitality, acceptance, and exchange since the classical era when the status of 'the foreigner' has been undeniably central in cultural and socio- legal terms in European civilization. In the medieval period, "foreigner" was applied to any stranger not part of that society or culture.

Finally, the cultural definition of 'the foreigner' has oscillated throughout Western cultural history from hospitality/welcome to discrimination. The issue has become far more pertinent in recent years, given many Western countries' migration crises. In continental Europe, this crisis arguably represents one of the most significant sociopolitical challenges Europe has faced since the Second World War.

Over time, the term has led to a definition converging on discrimination, arousing ambivalence between tolerance and fear for diversity, and involving cultural, socio- anthropological, and geopolitical aspects.

This prompts a serious and inspired reflection at the socio-political, legislative, cultural and educational level, especially involving universities about re-thinking our society's socio-cultural state and passing future graduates the skills to independently assess the societal impact of migration and the political decisions that shape migration policies.

This event addresses scholars from different fields and approaches in social sciences and humanities.

The training sessions consist of a combination of lectures conducted by Senior Researchers and presentations, discussions led by PhD students expert in the field.

PROGRAM DETAILS

OCTOBER 2022

Friday 7 October, 15.00-16.00 CET

Charlotte Püttmann, Research fellow at the Gerhard Mercator Graduate Programme Open-Mindedness, Tolerance and Public Engagement & Research Assistant, University of Duisburg-Essen, Department of Modern and Contemporary Art History at the

Title: Presentation of (Flight-)Migration. A Critical Image Analysis of the "Refugees Welcome" Sticker

Monday 10 October, 15.00-16.00 CET

Elena Furlanetto, PhD, Wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin Assistant Professor, Universität Duisburg-Essen, Department of Anglophone Studies

Title: Barbary Captivity Narrative across North America and North Africa

Friday 14 October, 15.00-16.00 CET

Andreas Oberprantacher, MA, PhD, Professor, Universitat Innsbruck, Institut für Philosophie

Title: Between Departure and Arrival: On the Strange Figure of Displaced People

Thursday 27 October, 15.00-16.00 CET

Valerio Nitrato Izzo, Professor, University of Naples Federico II, Department of Law

Title: Territorial belonging between law and politics: the case of urban citizenship

NOVEMBER 2022

Friday 4 November, 15.00-16.00 CET

Flora Di Donato, Professor* & Alessandro Campo, PhD**, (*University of Naples Federico II, Department of Law; ** University of Turin, Department of Law)

Title: Narrating asylum stories: attempts of authenticity and institutional boundaries

Thursday 10 November, 15.00-16.00 CET

Maria Giulia Bernardini, Professor, University of Ferrara, Department of Law

Title: Unexpected. The «struggle for rights» of migrants with disabilities

Friday 11 November, 15.00-16.00 CET

Shailini Vinod, Ph.D. Scholar (Creative Writing), University of Aberdeen

Title: Literature and art by immigrants. A socio-literary exploration of the culturally and linguistically distinct British South-Indian community

Pujar