Unmaking Migrants: Nigeria's Campaign to End Human Trafficking

Unmaking Migrants explores the prevention of trafficking by preventing migration through a study of a shelter for trafficking victims in Lagos, Nigeria. Government officials defend this form of intervention as preemptive, but many of the women protest their detention and demand to be released. Migration can be a freely made choice, and well-intentioned efforts to help women often don't address their real needs.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 210 pages
Publication date: 30 May 2022
Publisher: Cornell University Press

Unmaking Migrants delves into critical inquiries surrounding the prevention of trafficking by examining the operations of a shelter for trafficking victims in Lagos, Nigeria. Over the past fifteen years, anti-trafficking personnel have intercepted thousands of women intending to travel outside of Nigeria, redirecting them to the federal counter-trafficking agency for investigation, protection, and rehabilitation. Government officials defend this intervention as proactive, claiming that it prevents potential abuses from occurring. However, many of the women detained in these facilities protest their confinement, asserting that they were not subjected to trafficking and demanding their release.

Stacey Vanderhurst, in her argument, posits that migration can be a voluntary decision. Unmaking Migrants offers a revealing glimpse into the moments preceding the migration choice, highlighting how well-intentioned efforts to assist women considering such paths often fail to adequately address their genuine needs.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501763533