Abdelaaty Talks to CNN, Mother Jones About Why Countries Embrace Some Refugees but Not Others

March 12, 2022

CNN,Mother Jones,The London Economic

Lamis Abdelaaty

Political Science Department

Campbell Public Affairs Institute

Human Rights

Middle East & North Africa

Refugees

Ukraine

CNN

Mother Jones

The London Economic

Lamis Abdelaaty

Ukrainian refugees are being welcomed by European nations like Denmark. But critics are accusing the Danish government of hypocrisy, since it is currently urging Syrian refugees originating from Damascus and its surrounding countryside to return there, despite the ongoing civil war and the regime's brutal reputation. "Part of the answer has to do with identity," says Assistant Professor of Political Science Lamis Abdelaaty on Twitter (and cited by CNN). "Ukrainians are seen as White, Christian. Syrians, Afghans, and others are not perceived this way. People sympathize with refugees who they think share their race, religion, etc." Read more in the CNN article, "Denmark opens its arms to Ukrainians, while trying to send Syrian refugees home."

Abdelaaty, a migration and asylum expert, was also quoted in the Mother Jones article, "Ukrainian Refugees Are Being Embraced by Europe. Why Weren’t Syrians?" and The London Economic article, "Why do countries welcome some refugees and shut others out? A thread."