2024470074 Nguyen Xuan Mai

Khosravi, Shahram. 2010. ‘Illegal’ Traveller: An Auto-Ethnography of Borders.

London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Research Questions: What are the experiences for migrant rights in the
circumstances of transnational travel and globalization, and
how do the experiences of undocumented migrants
undermine socially created notions of legality, citizenship,
and political borders?
Research Answers: Shahram Khosravi's book "Illegal Traveller: An Auto-
Ethnography of Borders" offers a complex and convincing
response to the research question by bringing the topic of
geopolitically disadvantaged groups to life and pointing out
the challenges faced by migrants as a result of
institutionalized immigration law enforcement. Khosravi's
writings argue for a reevaluation of migrant rights by
challenging essentialized conceptions of the migrant
experience and highlighting the role and power of migrants.
The book also offers understandable arguments of migrant
rights by analyzing common terms like "criminal," "illegal,"
and "border" and demonstrating them as inaccurate
stereotypes.

The sad auto-ethnography "Illegal Traveller" by Shahram Khosravi describes the

author's journey from post-revolutionary Iran to Sweden, along with the stories of
other undocumented migrants. The book mixes straightforward academic talks
about the difficulties of "illegal" migration with sections of rich, emotional
storytelling. Through her own experiences, Khosravi challenges socially created
concepts of citizenship, legality, and political boundaries, giving voice to
marginalized populations and fighting for migrant rights.
Through his narrative approach, Khosravi is able to situate his theoretical
deconstruction of international borders, citizenship, and crime within the
autobiographical parts of the book. He draws attention to the challenges that
migrants deal with a consequence of the structural enforcement of boundaries,
stressing the personal elements that might influence their outcome. Khosravi also
discusses the dehumanization and commodification of immigrant passengers,
bringing attention to potential violations of their human rights. Significantly, he
delivers a balanced perspective on illegal migration by avoiding essentializing the
migrant experience.
In addition to Khosravi's touching narrative, the book offers comprehensible
justifications for migrant rights. It breaks down common phrases like "border,"
"illegal," and "criminal," presenting them as inaccurately completing ideas.
According to Khosravi, the nation-state restricts migrants their "right to have
rights" by making them criminals. He challenges the binary categorization of
migrants as passive and powerless by highlighting the agency of migrants and the
factors that go into the decision to move.
He breaks from his plot to provide background information about Iran's politics,
geography, social life, and historical context. By doing this, he is not only
discussing Iran and its bordering nations; rather, he is educating us on the
international power dynamics and the political and economic consequences of
border crossing by providing examples from Greece, Turkey, India, and the United
States, among other nations. Koshravi expertly places his tale in the larger
historical framework in this way.
Khosravi's work presents insight into migration, refugees, racism, and nationalism
while presenting a practical viewpoint on issues that are sometimes written off as
being too academic. It explores immigration laws and the terrible consequences of
living near borders, bringing light on the concepts of shame, home, and the
arbitrary character of the legal system. For instance, the term "smuggler" is usually
associated with a criminal character; however, Koshravi's smugglers are merely
"assistants," supporting those in need to cross borders; they are agents of
globalization. Further, by examining border violations and refugee rights from an
international economic and political perspective, the article highlights the coercive
power dynamics within the global political economy through many countries'
cases.
Khosravi inspires empathy from the reader and draws them in to the worldwide
problem of "illegal" immigration through his auto-ethnography. He tells stories of
immigrants being shunned at the end of their trip to illustrate how people get
politicized in their experience of not having a nation. The book also draws
attention to the mistreatment of refugees and the portrayal of migrants, promoting
international recognition of the problem.
Although Koshravi claims that his work is about hospitality, it also discusses
"shame." Because of his status as an in-between refugee, the author expresses a
range of shames, including shame for not having proper personal documentation,
shame for not being a "real" refugee, shame for not being able to support others
who are being mistreated and harassed during various migration processes, and
shame for abandoning loved ones behind during a conflict. By the time the novel
comes to a close, Koshravi has learned how to live with his humiliation, but he also
passes that guilt to the reader, who becomes changed much like Koshravi.
Though his writing helps the reader realize their place in connection to migrants,
particularly if they are a reader who has only experienced citizenship, his tales do
not offer an alternative or strategy to support the characterization of migrants.
Through drawing attention to the problems associated with immigration policy and
"human rights," Khosravi uses his auto-ethnography to give back to the community
he supports and promote awareness of the issue on a global level.
Overall, "Illegal Traveller" by Shahram Khosravi offers an engaging and
perceptive examination of the complicated reality of migration and the urgent
requirement to give migrant rights some thought. Shahram Khorsavi provides us
with a moving, inspirational, but unsatisfactory portrayal of a people still fighting
for recognition.