Title:
REFUGEES AND AGGRESSION: A SUGGESTIVE LINK

Authors:
Carl H.D. Steinmetz, Netherlands

Abstract:

This article examines the thesis of far-right populists who claim that refugees are aggressive (already were at birth). This thesis or view has led to the borders of Western countries being closed to refugees, with few exceptions. Step 1 discusses the numbers of people worldwide who have been forced to leave their homes. Stories are also told about what fleeing means to a person and her/his family. Research on the thesis is done using criminological research in the Western world. Furthermore, what psychiatry says about refugees and aggression is examined. The keywords here are the immeasurable number of traumatic events that refugees have undergone and the DSM-5 diagnoses that explain a possible connection between, on the one hand, refugees' traumatic experiences and aggression. This article launches the thesis that refugees are entitled to protection, also because the thesis of the right-wing extremist populists is unfounded. This is elaborated in concrete guidelines for mental health institutions and authorities.