(De)Securitization of Migration in Germany

Abstract

This research explores the (de)securitization of migration in the German case through qualitative Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). By coding multiple primary sources of speech acts of two actors from the political elite, the competing frames of (de)securitization governing migration will be investigated. Subject to this research are the political parties The Left (Die Linke) and Alternative for Germany (Alternative für Deutschland [AfD]) representing sentiments of the most left and right parties on the governmental level of German politics. Analysing speech acts framing migration post 2015, this research identifies the construction of and, emphasis on the security-migration nexus under consideration of characteristic patterns of political communication and the theory of migrantization. This research further exemplifies that neither of the frames of (de)securitization is just a snapshot. To the contrary, both frames need to be elucidated in order to reflect contemporary dynamics of polarized political discourse. Uncovering the security-migration nexus, this research finds that the AfD supports a securitizing and The Left a desecuritizing frame of migration. However, both parties' speech acts are supported to varying degrees. Whereas the speech acts of the AfD receive a high degree of acceptance by...