Borders, rather than markers of sovereign territory, are marketplaces comprised of always costly, and often deadly transactions. Moving from Lesbos, to Gaza, to Tijuana, the project shows how the costs of borders, patterned by inequalities of racism, sexism, and disability, fluctuate over time and space, and differ depending on who is attempting to cross.
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Heba Gowayed (pronounced HEH-buh go-WAY-ed), is a writer and sociologist. She is an Associate Professor of Sociology at CUNY Hunter College & Graduate Center. Her research and writing centers the lives of people who migrate across borders and the unequal and often violent institutions they face.
Her award-winning book Refuge, published with Princeton University Press, takes readers into the lives of displaced Syrians who sought refuge in the US, Canada, and Germany. Their experiences reveal that these destination countries are not saviors; they can deny newcomers’ potential by failing to recognize their abilities and invest in the tools they need to prosper. She is currently working on a second book, The Cost of Borders that argues borders, rather than markers of sovereign territory, are marketplaces comprised of always costly, and often deadly transactions. Moving from Lesbos, to Gaza, to Tijuana, the project shows how the costs of borders, patterned by inequalities of racism, sexism, and disability, fluctuate over time and space, and differ depending on who is attempting to cross.
She has also been featured on NPR’s Code Switch (https://www.npr.org/2022/05/24/1101055230/how-we-decide-who-is-worthy-of-welcome), the podcast This is Hell! (https://thisishell.com/episodes/1770).
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