In this groundbreaking new study, Nick Gill provides a conceptually innovative account of the ways in which indifference to the desperation and hardship faced by thousands of migrants fleeing persecution and exploitation comes about.

Series Editors’ Preface viii

List of Figures ix

Acronyms xi

Acknowledgements xii

1 Introduction 1

2 Moral Distance and Bureaucracy 21

3 Distant Bureaucrats 48

4 Distance at Close Quarters 76

5 Indifference Towards Suffering Others During Sustained Contact 107

6 Indifference and Emotions 135

7 Examining Compassion 156

8 Conclusion 179

Methodological Appendix 191

References 196

Index 216

In this groundbreaking new study of attitudes towards marginalized migrants in Western society, Nick Gill provides a conceptually innovative account of the ways in which indifference and insensitivity to desperation and hardship comes about. Taking UK asylum laws as its case study, and supported by survey and interview evidence obtained over the past decade, this book tells the story of immigration decision makers and the institutionalized spatial processes that limit and steer their agency. In addition to detailed illustrations of the flaws inherent in contemporary immigration administration, Gill provides an original theory of the relationship between distance and indifference to human suffering that is both theoretically informed by, and challenging to, the works of social theorists like Max Weber, Zygmunt Bauman, Emmanuel Levinas and Georg Simmel. In doing so, Gill questions the consensus that border controls are necessary or desirable in contemporary society, making Nothing Personal? a provocative and important addition to the contemporary conversation on immigration.

‘In this important book, Gill puts morality, suffering and compassion at the heart of asylum politics and scholarship. Drawing on empirical research, he offers a damning account of how the British immigration system has created a culture of indifference towards asylum seekers and examines the compassionate, but ‘risky’, activisms that have arisen in response to the immorality of border controls.'
- Imogen Tyler, Lancaster University, UK

‘Nothing Personal is personal: a thoughtful and timely analysis of the roles played by morality and indifference shaping detention in the UK. Gill insightfully explores spatial strategies such as dispersal, separation, buffering, and distance to better understand how people suffer (and die) in the custody of officials. This is an important read for anyone interested in understanding the people who run detention and asylum systems, and the politics of indifference at work there.'
- Alison Mountz, Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada