Scapegoating Human Smugglers: How Migrants' Accounts Challenge the EU's Dominant Narrative

Abstract

This article applies a migrant-centered approach to examine how first-hand accounts challenge the EU's dominant portrayal of the role of human smugglers. Based on one-hundred semi-structured interviews with migrants in Europe and North Africa, the analysis explores human smugglers' degree of influence on migrants' decisions and the extent of deception involved in unauthorized journeys. The findings reveal that their role in decision-making is highly overstated, challenging their widespread vilification and portrayal as primary instigators of irregular migration. It concludes with a discussion on how inaccurate portrayals may serve as a powerful discursive device sustaining ineffective policies with undeclared intentions.