In the case law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) the right of States to control migration is firmly established despite strong indications that the effects of migration control are not racially neutral. In this article we attempt to understand how it is possible that the doctrine of sovereign migration control is not considered to breach the prohibition of racial discrimination. We argue that the ECtHR’s approach to migration and racial discrimination fits a pattern in the historical development of migration law whereby the right to travel, and the power of States to restrict this right, have been consistently defined in such a way as to protect the interests of the predominantly white population of today's global North. Hence, the ease with which the racialised impact of migration control is accepted as normal and compatible with the prohibition of racial discrimination is consistent with migration law's long history as part of colonial and postcolonial relations.

在欧洲人权法院 (ECtHR) 的判例法中，尽管有强烈迹象表明移民控制的影响不是种族中立的，但国家控制移民的权利已经牢固确立。在本文中，我们试图了解主权移民控制原则如何可能不被视为违反禁止种族歧视的规定。我们认为，欧洲人权法院对移民和种族歧视的处理方式符合移民法历史发展的一种模式，即旅行权​​和国家限制这一权利的权力一直以保护利益的方式被定义占当今全球北方以白人为主的人口的比例。因此，