Visual Representations of Refugees in German Media 2010 - 2020

This photo accompanied an article published on December 19, 2014, on taz.de with the headline “Die Not wird endlich anerkannt” (The need is finally acknowledged). The photo caption describes it as “Eine Frau aus Syrien in der Erstaufnahmeeinrichtung für Asylbewerber in München” (A woman from Syria in the initial reception center for asylum seekers in Munich) and credits the dpa. The female refugee wears a pink hijab, likely indicating her Muslim faith, and is facing away from the camera while viewing a mural, thereby blocking her face and identity. The mural’s background is covered in blocks of shades of pinks, oranges, and yellow, with writing in various languages and symbols painted across the different squares. In the foreground of the mural are three figures painted in blacks and greys, a mother with her son and daughter.

 

The face of the mother is out of frame, but the children wear sorrowful expressions. Shielding the face of the subject by shooting from behind, as the photographer did in this case, or by other means, such as through hand coverings or silhouettes, can be a useful tool for photographers in situations in which the subject wishes to remain anonymous for personal reasons or other safety concerns, as is sadly the case for many refugees. However, when such a photo, whose original intent was to ethically protect its subject by concealing their face, is used by a syndicated organization like the dpa, the same photo becomes merely a propagation of the same name-lessness and loss of identity caused by large group photographs.

 

Although the article describes a positive change in the German refugee policy, it speaks to the issue on a broad political scale and describes the economics of Germany beginning to accept large numbers of refugees already at the end of 2014. The Syrian woman depicted in the photograph used as a companion for the article is never given a name, even a pseudonym, to relate her to the readership of taz.de, or given a platform to share her personal experiences. Rather, she is exploited as a placeholder, an industry requirement for news articles to include an accompanying photograph, even if only minimally applicable to the article itself – an issue already present in 2014 which has only grown further due to the algorithmic pressures of social media incentivizing posts including photographs in the last half of the decade.