Visual Representations of Refugees in German Media 2010 - 2020
By: Cassidy Chreene Whittle, M.S. GMC - German
Advisors: Dr. Britta Kallin, Associate Professor of German, and
Dr. Richard Utz, Chair and Professor, Literature, Media, and Communication
Refugees on Lampedusa: "Italy is a big country"
Der Spiegel / April 11, 2011 / photo by Venezia Filipp from the dpa
As an accompanying photo to the article "Innenminister Friedrich lässt Italien abblitzen" (Interior Minister Friedrich rebuffed Italy) published by Der Spiegel on April 11, 2011, this image shows dozens of male refugees gathered in front of an Italian official. Its caption states "Flüchtlinge auf Lampedusa: 'Italien ist ein großes Land'" (Refugees on Lampedusa: "Italy is a big country") and complements the article's discussion of CSU Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich's comments that "it's Italy's turn" to accept refugees from North Africa.
The refugees depicted in this photo can be assumed to be among the 27,000 Tunisian refugees who were searching for safety in Italy in 2011 as described in more detail in the article. By positioning the officer in the foreground of the photograph, the photographer from the dpa enlarges both the officer's physical size in the frame as well as the size of his authority in the minds of the viewers. Contrasting the officer's officer's formidable stance, the group of refugees sits on the bare ground, many with their knees pulled up to their chest, huddled together closely creating a sense of characterlessness. Finally, the detail of the officer's badge and the Italian skyline behind the group of men give the viewer a sense of location.
The collectivistic nature in regards to photographing and portraying refugees demonstrated in this photo coincides with the style of other images published prior to the European Refugee Crisis in 2015. Although refugees were not entering Europe in 2011 at the same overwhelming numbers as in 2015, the Syrian conflict was at its beginning, and conflict in Northern Africa also pushed some migrants to flee to Europe, and right-wing politicians such as the CSU Interior Minister in this article, worked to push against their acceptance in Germany and in Europe. The pairing of this ideology with a photo that lacks any disparate information or deeper explanation of the individuals making this journey, their motivation, and their goals, simply leads to further disconnect between the reader and the refugees.