Title: Liberal government's discourse on the 2017-2018 Canada-US cross-border arrivals

Authors: Sasha Baglay

Addresses: Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, 2000 Simcoe St N, Oshawa, ON L1G 0C5, Canada

Abstract: The article examines Canadian government's discourse on the 2017-2018 asylum-seeker border crossings from the US. The analysis reveals presence of mixed messages some of which are in keeping with Canada's image of an open and welcoming country committed to its international obligations, while others reinforce concerns about the arrivals and implicitly suggest that they are taking advantage of the system. These mixed messages are in tension with the Liberal Party's brand of inclusive and open Canada, which obtained popular support at the last federal election and has helped the new Liberal government to differentiate itself internationally.

Keywords: asylum-seeker; cross-border; information/outreach campaign; deterrence; discourse; migration; irregular; Canada; US.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMBS.2019.102448

International Journal of Migration and Border Studies, 2019 Vol.5 No.3, pp.232 - 264

Received: 28 Dec 2018
Accepted: 23 May 2019
Published online: 24 Sep 2019 *

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