Critical Refugee Studies: Reconceptualizing the Refugee Crisis with Dr. Yen Le Espiritu and Dr. Lila Sharif from the Critical Refugee Studies Collective

<p>On this show, SWANA collective members <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drsnoopfrog/?hl=en" target="_blank"><u>Rana Sharif </u></a>and Ankine Antaram speak with Dr. Yen Le Espiritu and Dr. Lila Sharif from the<a href="https://criticalrefugeestudies.com/" target="_blank"><u> Critical Refugee Studies Collective</u></a> to discuss a conceptual reframing of who refugees are and the condition of “refugeehood.” June 20, is what the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, refers to as World Refugee Day. According to the <a href="https://www.unhcr.org/cy/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2021/01/10-facts-about-refugees-1-Aug-2020_ENG.pdf" target="_blank"><u>agency</u></a>, one percent of the world’s population is displaced and of those displaced the vast majority are either internally displaced or seeking refuge in their neighboring countries. This day has been marked to “celebrate the strength and courage of people who have been forced to flee their home country to escape conflict or persecution. World Refugee Day is an occasion to build empathy and understanding for their plight and to recognize their resilience in rebuilding their lives.” While the plight of refugees cannot be underscored enough, one aspect of the “crisis of refugees” that such statistics diminish is the affirming ways in which refugees <em>make life.</em><br> <br> Originally from Việt Nam, Yến Lê Espiritu is Distinguished Professor and former Chair of the Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of California, San Diego. An award winning author, she has published widely on Asian American panethnicity, gender and migration, and U.S. colonialism and wars in Asia. Her most recent book is <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520277717/body-counts" target="_blank"><em>Body Counts: The Vietnam War and Militarized Refuge(es)</em></a>. Her current research examines the (im)possibilities of solidarity among refugees from the global South, and the intertwined yet differing political histories and historical trauma. She is also the recipient of numerous teachin