The Convoluted Experiences of Young Nigerian Victims of Trafficking along Their Migration Trajectories

Abstract

This dissertation comprises two studies: the European Research Council-funded ChildMove Project, which studied the impact of transit experiences on the psychological wellbeing of unaccompanied refugee minors, and the Sub-Saharan Women In Prostitution Ethnographic Research (swipser) Project on the wellbeing of Nigerian and Ghanaian women working in prostitution in the red-light district of Brussels, funded by the municipality of Schaerbeek, Brussels. The ChildMove Project has various aspects: the present study focused on the complex experiences of Nigerian victims of trafficking in Italy. To better understand respondents’ experiences during their migration trajectories, we employed a multi-site, longitudinal approach which included semi-structured interviews with the participants. Using a multi-method ethnographic approach, the swipser Project highlights the experiences of Nigerian and Ghanaian women working in the red-light district of Brussels: their daily challenges and how those challenges impact their wellbeing. Both studies discuss the challenges, violent experiences and stigmatisation that the respondents encounter, as well as their coping strategies and their inability to escape the labelling and abuse that they experience, even though the migration journey has ended for many but continues for others.