Driving social change from below: exploring the role of counter-security technologies in constructing mobile noncitizens

Information and communication technology held promise for quite a while as a potential instrument for instigating new rhetoric in public discourse, and a would-be generator of social change. This development has been particularly desired in the area of mobility and border control. In this paper, I further my analysis of counter-security technologies used by illegalised migrants, and explore its potential impact on how we conceptualise and engage with irregular migration. I look at the use of information and communication technology (such as smartphones and social media) in developing and adopting counter-accounts around migration that can assist in desecuritisation of the issue, and rehumanisation of border crossers. Ultimately, I argue, counter-security technologies could be instrumental in altering narratives pertinent to people on the move, and their transformation from illegalised non-citizens to (unhyphenated) noncitizens. As such, they are defined by the relationship with the state, in which their human rights and agency will be upheld.