Abstract
ABSTRACT In the wake of an intensifying hostile environment towards migrants and refugees in the U.S. and Europe, children’s picture books play an important role in shaping children’s understanding of migration and attitudes towards migrants. How do contemporary children’s books depict migration? This article discusses the findings of a thematic analysis of 40 picture books about migration, published between 2015 and 2019 in the U.K. and the U.S. We found that these books typically present successful migration stories where children move from unfortunate circumstances in their home countries to happier lives in the host countries. Host countries are mostly located in the global North and migrants are generally welcomed with generosity and hospitality. We also found that the books give important attention to historical contexts. However, while children’s picture books concerning migration contribute to enhancing children’s understanding of migration in some ways, they concurrently erase difference and injustice, and thus miss an opportunity to broaden children’s knowledge and appreciation of the plurality of cultures, experiences, and places and the urgent need to respect and protect them. IMPACT SUMMARY a. Prior State of Knowledge: Existing research, predominantly in the field of education, highlights how children’s books can promote understanding of and empathy towards migrants and refugees, dispel stereotypes, and teach children how to show kindness, respect, and hospitality towards migrants and refugees. b. Novel Contributions: The study highlights not just how children’s picture books contribute to enhancing children’s understanding of migration, but also how these books concurrently erase difference and injustice, and thus miss an opportunity to broaden children’s knowledge and appreciation of difference. c. Practical Implications: The study draws parents’ and educators’ attention to the lessons children can learn from picture books on immigration, their benefits and limitations. It advances storytellers’ understanding of how to broaden children’s knowledge and appreciation of difference in books about migration.
Highlights
Dreamers, a children’s picture book written by Yuyi Morales, was published at the height of the 2018 family-separation crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, following the Trump administration’s announcement of a “zero tolerance” policy to prosecute all adults who try to cross the border illegally.1 The book tells the story of a mother’s and her son’s journey from Mexico to the U.S, recounting their experiences as they find comfort and pleasure in their new country, and especially in the picture books they discover in their local public library
We examined a) types of migration stories being represented in these books, b) depictions of the migrants’ lives before and after migration and in the corresponding countries of origin and host countries, c) depictions of the migration journey, d) depictions of the characters, their agency and voice
Our study focused on young children’s picture books as one of these media and examined the stories they tell and how they depict migration for English-speaking readers
Summary
A children’s picture book written by Yuyi Morales, was published at the height of the 2018 family-separation crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, following the Trump administration’s announcement of a “zero tolerance” policy to prosecute all adults who try to cross the border illegally. The book tells the story of a mother’s and her son’s journey from Mexico to the U.S, recounting their experiences as they find comfort and pleasure in their new country, and especially in the picture books they discover in their local public library. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) figures, as of 2019, at least 79.5 million people around the world had been forced to flee their homes due to war, violence, and persecution, including 26 million refugees, half of whom were under the age of 18 (UNHCR, 2020) It is in this context that immigration and the “refugee crisis” have topped the political agendas in both the U.S and Europe, with media and cultural texts playing a pivotal role in shaping public understanding of these issues. In her study of Michael Bond’s popular 1958 U.K. picture book Paddington, which recounts the adven tures of the stowaway character Paddington Bear upon his arrival in London (and has recently been adapted into a series of popular films), Smith shows how Paddington Bear is constructed as a benign immigrant who enthusiastically assimilates into the dominant British culture This is coupled with the underlying narrative of control that is exerted over him as Other ( compassionately expressed by the English family who welcomes him into their home). We analyze the books as media scholars who appreciate the potential of storytelling in its various modalities to shape worldviews from an early age
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