Pat Rubio Bertran
Thesis title: (Central) Mediterranean solidarities, resistances, and futures
Throughout history, solidarity and mutual aid groups and networks have been organising to support migrant struggles from the consequences of organised abandonment (Gilmore, 2008) and necropolitical policies (Mbembe, 2017). In this context, this project contributes to the interdisciplinary conversations on contemporary solidarities with people on the move in the (Central) Mediterranean region by exploring three main pillars: Mediterranean solidarities, Mediterranean futures, and Mediterranean resistances to criminalisation and repression. Through interviews with solidarity and mutual aid groups and ethnography in Morocco, Spain, Italy, Tunisia, and at sea, this project examines how these groups understand and practice solidarity, how they experience and resist repression and criminalisation, and how these world-building practices allow us to imagine alternative modes of living.
Biography
Pat is a PhD candidate at Aston University's Centre for Migration and Forced Displacement (CMFD), researching migration and solidarity. Pat also volunteers as a sea rescue crew for several civil search and rescue organizations in the Mediterranean, and holds an LLM in Human Rights Law, where they specialised in legal research regarding borders and migration.
Area Studies
Aston University
2022 Cohort 1+3
Supervisory Team
Dr. Jelena Obradović-Wochnik
Dr. Myriam Fotou