How solidarity with migrant people is stifled at the France-UK border

In France and elsewhere, state authorities harass and intimidate human rights activists, NGO practitioners, humanitarian volunteers and other citizens who provide support to (racialised) people criminalised for seeking safety, dignity, and opportunities. This criminalisation has devastating effects on the individuals targeted, contributing to an overall climate of violence and fear, while also deepening the vulnerabilities of migrant people. It also raises questions about how bordering processes not only govern the mobility of migrant people but also target those who challenge such processes, thereby (to some extent) collapsing some of their experiences, notably as subjects of repression and surveillance. Beyond these high-profile court-cases, forms of criminalisation targeting solidarity actors range from the formal to the informal, the banal to the spectacular.