Paper details
| Paper authors | H. Pınar Şenoguz, Friedemann Yi-Neumann |
| In panel on | Resisting Border Violence: The Role of Civil Society, Local Actors, and Researchers |
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Abstract
In our contribution, we raise the question of how to sensitize the broader public and foster action in response to border violence by documenting the fatalities of border regimes. Drawing on our installation of the global pop-up exhibition Hostile Terrain 94, shown in Frankfurt am Main, Germany—conceptualized by U.S. anthropologist Jason De León and his team—this exhibition is dedicated to documenting the fatalities of the U.S. border regime. Moreover, the Frankfurt show featured accounts that addressed the humanitarian disaster at the European borders and beyond. We argue that forensic anthropological, activist-artist, and participatory forms of display, understood as material interventions into public space, can counteract the widespread apathy toward border violence and the challenges of dehumanizing representations. We will reflect on the implementation of this exhibition displayed at Klapperfeld, a former Gestapo and deportation prison that is now an autonomously run cultural center. Our discussion will also incorporate insights from accompanying side events, including artistic contributions, discussions, and workshops held within and beyond academic spaces. By doing so, we intend to explore the possibilities of combining evidence-based advocacy, affective material encounters, and public education within the broader migrant solidarity movement and the wider public.
