Criminalizing Humanitarian Aid for Migrants at the Border

• Aid workers are facing increasing harassment, police violence, and criminalization for providing food and medical care to migrants in border regions.
• Migrants are subjected to physical assaults, destroyed shelters, and organized hostility from both authorities and vigilante groups.

The Crisis at the Frontier

• Border zones—such as those in Ceuta, the Canary Islands, or Calais—have become militarized spaces where humanitarian efforts are actively blocked.
• Aid organizations report that they are frequently prevented from delivering basic food supplies, even when those supplies are intended to address extreme hunger.
• Migrants endure constant surveillance, lack of basic shelter, and threats from armed groups, leading to a state of perpetual tension and displacement.

Social and Political Implications

• The hostility directed at migrants is fueled by negative societal perceptions that normalize exclusion and violence in daily interactions.
• Public memorial actions, such as laying flowers for those who died attempting to cross the border, are increasingly viewed by activists as insufficient responses to the systemic violence and impunity characterizing the current humanitarian crisis.