Meet the Smugglers Who Make Mass Migration Possible

Despite wide attention to the global refugee and migrant crisis, there has been little research of one key group that facilitates the movement of migrants: the smugglers.

In brand new book published by Oxford University Press authors Peter Tinti and Tuesday Reitano offer an in-depth look at the individuals who make the movement of migrants possible. The book Migrant Refugee Smuggler Savior examines the people (and places) that are profiting from this global phenomenon. And as the title of the book suggests, these people smugglers are not all exploitative human rights violators--rather, they are making a buck (or tens of thousands of bucks) by providing a valuable service to people who demand it.

Co-author Peter Tinti is on the line with me to discuss the book. And in this conversation Peter offers some insights into the individual smugglers, the ingenuity of their operations and what motivates them. Also, he explains how this multi-billion dollar industry is transforming the political e…