Interwoven Destinies in the ‘Long Migration Summer’: Solidarity Movements Along the Western Balkan Route

Abstract

At the height of the humanitarian crisis of 2015, the countries along the so-called Western Balkan route presented diverging opportunities for mobilisations in support of migrants. We interpret these opportunities as sequential and, thus, interwoven at the cross-national level. The adverse context presented by the Hungarian case essentially offered a favourable opportunity for mobilisations in neighbouring countries like Serbia. The turning point was intelligibly offered by the erection of fences first along the Hungarian-Serbian and then along the Croatian-Hungarian border—ultimate displays of a long-term war against multiculturalism waged by the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán. Therefore, while prospects for solidarity movements have been de facto exhausted in Hungary, mobilisations went on for longer in neighbouring countries. Despite the different opportunities provided by their contexts, solidarity movements along the Western Balkan route articulated similar collective action frames; their assessment of the problem, proposed solutions, and motivations delivered comparable themes throughout migratory flows into their countries. We reconstruct the sequentiality of these mobilisations and their similar frames by means of original interviews with collective solidarity actors.