Introduction: Migration and global justice

In this introduction to the Elgar Handbook on Migration and Global Justice, the editors situate migration against a backdrop of contradictions arising from globalization, global crisis and massive global inequalities. After briefly reviewing selected literature on migration and global justice, they explain how contributors with backgrounds in legal theory and practice, border criminology, sociology, gender studies, anthropology, public health, politics, social work, journalism, refugee studies, human rights, political philosophy, public policy and advocacy, cultural studies, literature and the visual arts have interrogated the intersection between migration and global justice. To borrow the terminology of contributor David Owen, the authors consider both the pursuit of global justice in access to migration, and the wider economic and geopolitical circumstances that drive populations to seek justice through migration. They approach global justice from multiple perspectives, viewing it through the lenses of geopolitics, subjective experience, human rights and political activism. The handbook addresses the key conundrum arising from the tensions between international and national priorities, duties, laws as well as visions for human coexistence and harmony. It would seem that the need for deep insights into the harms of current migration and citizenship policies, and new visions for a more globally just future in relation to the migration process and its aftermath, has never been more urgent.