Pre-flight experiences and migration stories: the accounts of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children |
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| Authors: | Peter E Hopkins Malcolm Hill |
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| Institution: | 1. School of Geography, Politics and Sociology, Newcastle University , Newcastle, NE1 7RU, UK;2. Glasgow Centre for the Child and Society, Glasgow School of Social Work, University of Strathclyde , Glasgow, G13 1PP, UK |
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| Abstract: | Much work about transnational migration and mobility overlooks the active role of children in such processes and experiences. This paper counters the omission from the literature by exploring the pre-flight experiences and migration stories of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in Scotland. In doing so, we demonstrate that unaccompanied minors experience a range of traumatic situations in their countries of origin including, the death or persecution of family members, war, forced recruitment and personal persecution. In their experiences of transnational migration processes, the majority are brought by an agent, with accounts of smuggling and trafficking being minimal. |
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| Keywords: | unaccompanied children asylum migration pre-flight experiences |
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