Europe’s border crisis as an autoimmune disorder

The author critiques the EU's approach to 'irregular' migration, arguing that the contradiction between humanitarian rhetoric and security imperatives is not a 'gap' but a symptom of biopolitical governance. Using Roberto Esposito's concept of autoimmunity, the text posits that the EU's drive for maximal security has created a system that destroys the populations it claims to protect. The author suggests moving toward an 'affirmative biopolitics' through demilitarisation, on-shoring border practices, and creating legal labour migration channels.

• The EU's 'Global Approach to Migration and Mobility' (GAMM) creates a paradoxical subject position for 'irregular' migrants, framing them simultaneously as lives in need of protection via search and rescue and as threats to the security, economy, and identity of the EU.
• The author contends that the EU's border crisis is an 'autoimmune disorder' where the logic of immunisation—using a threat to develop resistance—has crossed a threshold, resulting in militarised bordering practices that threaten the lives they are intended to protect.
• The document highlights a conflict between official EU claims and NGO reports regarding Frontex operations; while the EU Commission states that Operations Poseidon and Triton saved over 122,000 lives in 2015, NGOs like United Against Racism allege the agency has engaged in illegal operations that abandon migrants in distress.
• To resolve the crisis, the author proposes a shift toward 'affirmative biopolitics' involving the demilitarisation of borders, returning bordering practices on-shore, increasing democratic oversight of security practices, and establishing legal channels for labour migration.

APA

Vaughan-Williams, N. (2016). Europe’s border crisis as an autoimmune disorder. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europes-border-crisis-as-an-autoimmune-disorder/

Chicago

Vaughan-Williams, Nick. Europe’s border crisis as an autoimmune disorder. Green European Journal, 2016. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europes-border-crisis-as-an-autoimmune-disorder/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Vaughan-Williams |first1=Nick |title=Europe’s border crisis as an autoimmune disorder |publisher=Green European Journal |date=20 April 2016 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europes-border-crisis-as-an-autoimmune-disorder/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{vaughanwilliams2016europes, author = {Vaughan-Williams, Nick}, title = {{Europe’s border crisis as an autoimmune disorder}}, institution = {Green European Journal}, year = {2016}, month = apr, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europes-border-crisis-as-an-autoimmune-disorder/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }