Xenophobia and Venezuelan migration in Ecuador: Between insecurity and labor competition

Abstract

This article analyses how the relationship between perceptions of insecurity and labour competition informs perceptions of community rejection of Venezuelan migrants and refugees working in the informal commerce of Ecuador. While current debates assume the perceived insecurity to be the consequence of governmental safety policies and criminalization of migrants by the state and media, labour competition is often seen as an intrinsic economic condition for xenophobia. This study provides initial findings of perceptions of labour market competition from interviews with key actors, as well as surveys and focus groups in Quito’s informal labour market (2018-2019). Results indicate that this attitude of rejection towards Venezuelans did not emerge directly from labour competition in daily interaction, but because of imageries of “invasion and insecurity” circulated by the media, the security-focused response of the state, and the roll-back of the state in social investment and public employment.