Obstruction

Plowright, William; Mitchell, Katharyne; Pallister-Wilkins, Polly

Abstract

This chapter questions the externalities of humanitarianism and philanthropy, looking at the reactions to the humanitarian impulse to aid, and how these reactions may result in decreased access to services for vulnerable people. Specifically, it analyzes the issue of the obstruction of humanitarian assistance, looking at how states may seek to obstruct humanitarian actors from assisting vulnerable populations. After a discussion of obstruction and a framing of the forms of obstruction that states and nonstate actors may wield, the chapter discusses two illustrative examples: the crisis in Yemen, and the so-called European migration crisis. When humanitarianism seeks to go across borders to assist people experiencing crisis, it inevitable comes up against barriers and boundaries that prevent its movement. When states seek to obstruct humanitarian assistance, they do so using the various forms of state power against the humanitarian organizations that they wish to block. The chapter discusses seven key forms of obstruction by states.

Citation

Plowright, W., Mitchell, K., & Pallister-Wilkins, P. (2023). Obstruction. In The Routledge Handbook of Critical Philanthropy and Humanitarianism (259-270). Routledge

• Online Publication Date: Mar 1, 2023
• Publication Date: Mar 1, 2023
• Deposit Date: Jan 20, 2025
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Pages: 259-270
• Book Title: The Routledge Handbook of Critical Philanthropy and Humanitarianism
• Chapter Number: 19
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/3342308
• Publisher URL: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/durham/reader.action?docID=7174876&ppg=276