Abstract

In this introduction I provide an overview of this Special Issue on migration problems at the southwestern border of the United States. These problems are framed against the rising world-wide tide of anti-immigrant rhetoric and the ascendance of right-wing nationalist leaders. I maintain that, from a group dynamic perspective, we in the US are witnessing the emergence of an authoritarian fight group leader (Bion, 1961) who has capitalized on the systematic arousal and manipulation of our most primitive fears, and who encourages the use of developmentally regressive projective mechanisms that permit us to disown, externalize and deposit into the “other” all that is bad or destructive. A series of critical interrelated questions is posed for group therapists to consider in order to respond effectively to the challenges we face. I explain the context in which this volume took shape and offer a set of guidelines for how to address these problems. In addition, I review more recent developments regarding how our government is responding to this situation, and explore the linkages between the “immigration crisis”, racism, White nationalism and violence. I then describe the articles that comprise this Special Issue, acknowledging that these contributions depart from the more typically neutral and “objective” pieces published in a professional journal, and represent an amalgam of both professional and more personal statements that emanate from deeply held ethical principles and humanitarian concerns. I conclude by inviting our readers to share their reactions to this volume and to the concept that is advanced of the group therapist as a potential social change advocate.

摘要

在本引言中，我概述了有关美国西南边界移民问题的特刊。这些问题是与全球范围内反移民言​​论的上升趋势以及右翼民族主义领导人的崛起形成的。我坚持认为，从团体动态的角度来看，我们在美国目睹了一个专制斗争团体领导人的出现（Bion，1961年），他利用系统地唤醒和操纵我们最原始的恐惧，并鼓励使用发展性退步的投射机制，使我们可以将不良或破坏性的一切抛弃，外化并存入“其他”。提出了一系列关键的相互关联的问题，供团体治疗师考虑，以便有效应对我们面临的挑战。我解释了该卷的形成背景，并提供了有关如何解决这些问题的一组准则。此外，我回顾了有关我国政府如何应对这种情况的最新动态，并探讨了“移民危机”，种族主义，白人民族主义和暴力之间的联系。然后，我描述构成此特刊的文章，并承认这些贡献与专业期刊上发表的更为中立和“客观”的文章背离，并代表了根深蒂固的道德原则所产生的专业和个人陈述的混合物和人道主义关注。最后，我邀请读者分享他们对本书的内容以及作为潜在的社会变革倡导者的集体治疗师的先进观念的反应。