21.06.2016
Abstract
This aim of this paper is to map out the development of the ‘crisis’ discourse in the context of the mass refugee influx in 2015, and investigate its correlation with narratives related to solidarity, securitization, and humanitarianism, as well as the rising popularity of populist radical right political parties in the context of the refugee influx to the EU. Through political discourse analysis, two discursive shifts related to the ‘crisis’ are identified, namely, the shift away from humanitarian solutions to security measures, and the shift away from EU-focused solidarity to reliance on non-EU actors. Both of the identified discursive shifts are then analyzed in the context of their possible current and future effect on solidarity within the EU. Lastly, this paper addresses the possible long-term repercussions of the ‘crisis’ discourse on the EU’s asylum policy and the rise of populist radical right political parties.