RACISM, HISTORY, AND THE RELEVANCE OF CDA APPROACHES TO THE DISCOURSE OF MIGRATION
RACISM, HISTORY, AND THE RELEVANCE OF CDA APPROACHES TO THE DISCOURSE OF MIGRATION

Summary/Abstract: The purpose of critical theories in the tradition of the Frankfurt School is to assess the true significance of prevailing ideologies promoted by privileged, ruling sections of a community. They may show that the dominant ideology misrepresents how human relations are represented and how they work in the real world. One of these critical theories has come to be called Critical Discourse Analysis, which combines the critical attitude of the Frankfurt School with the examination of language developed in Discourse Analysis. It has to do with language and power seen as Language and Power and with an engagement with harmful ideologies. Racism is obviously one such harmful ideology. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as a theoretical approach is becoming increasingly attractive to those analyzing language in action, its relation to power and ideology. That is why a transition from Discourse Analysis to CDA is particularly welcome in an examination of biased and prejudiced discourse, such as racism, especially in the sensitive contemporary contexts provided by migration and its consequences. The current article surveys significant moments and episodes linking the history of migration, the evolving discourse of racism and the theoretical framework in which it is to be investigated within which Critical Discourse Analysis plays a prominent role.

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