INFOSHEET: Surplus and Displacement, Refugees and Migrants
In this essay, researcher Nadia Bou Ali explores the concept of “surplus-humanity” as articulated by various theorists, which delineates the marginalized masses facing inequality, dispossession, and displacement, devoid of social and human rights. Bou Ali intertwines this notion with the critical discourse on “surplus populations” from political economy, elucidating how economic systems both exclude and potentially absorb those they marginalize. She contends that understanding this economic underpinning is vital for comprehending the unique challenges faced by refugees, particularly in contexts like the aftermath of the Türkiye/Syria earthquake, where social insecurity and unemployment serve as gateways to economic integration for displaced populations.
The essay reveals the connection between surplus-population to economic dynamics and labour exploitation, which contribute to rising unemployment rates within national economies. It explores how this surplus labour force, often excluded from formal rights and employment, paradoxically facilitates the lowering of wages, perpetuating a cycle of economic exclusion.
This analysis highlights that social and economic exclusion are not synonymous and sheds light on the role of aid in contexts like Lebanon, where NGOs play a significant role in supporting refugees’ subsistence needs.
Read the full article, originally published at Global Dialogue.