Derrida’s Concept of Hos(ti)pitality and Hate Crime in Turkey

Abstract

This article considers hate crime against Syrian migrants in Turkey within the context of the Turkish government’s politics of hospitality, with reference to Derrida’s notion of the hos(ti)pitality. It analyzes hate crime directed at Syrian refugees as reported in Turkish newspapers between 2014 and 2021. The data analysis used Van Dijk’s Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) method. The findings reveal that hate crimes resulted from hate speech collectively targeting Syrians as a burden and threat for the nation. The government’s hospitality grants Syrian migrants a status of guest and the guest becomes the hated other or enemy which leads to hate crime.