Differentiation of Migrants and the Future of Europe. Parliamentary Discourse on the Migration Crises in Poland

From the 2015 migration crisis up to the 2021 border crisis with Belarus, migration has become a growing subject of concern in Poland. In the wake of crises, the frontier in discourse between “war refugees” and “economic migrants” became extremely thin, with an increased negative depiction of both refugees and migrants. Furthermore, migration has been considerably politicised and mediatised in Poland, and has been increasingly discussed in relation to other issues, notably the development of European integration. Migration has been one basis for questioning the current role and functioning of the EU. Against this backdrop, this research investigates discourse on migration in Poland with regard to the differentiating process and boundary-setting against migrants, as well as Poland’s relation with the EU. It explores differentiation as a process through which differences between migration statuses are constructed in discourse and translated in political claims regarding who should be – or not – welcome on the national territory. This discursive selection in migration eventually relates to Europe and its future – i.e., the EU’s role but also Poland’s place within it. Based on a qualitative analysis of parliamentary debates on migration hold in the Polish parliament from 2015 to 2021, this research aims at shedding light on Polish discourse on migration in relation to European integration. In this respect, it reflects on the differential inclusion of migrants, the future of the EU and Poland’s self-pictured role in Europe facing migration.