“The picture frame I see in front of me is made of gold but the picture itself portray an invading army. This is a metaphor I often use in my training to empower new migrants and refugees in the Netherland. I tell them to make their own frame, which is made of gold. And that they should never let someone convince them to believe their frames are made of ash or toilet paper. Teaching them to believe in themselves is paramount; because if they don’t believe in themselves who else will? The media?

When refugees or migrants arrive in a new country the first to announce their arrival is the media. As facilitators of public debate the media set the trend on how this new arrival will be welcomed by their host country. The media presents the facts, set the tone and the pace for public and politicians to form their opinion and acts. The ensuing public and political debates depicts these refugees and migrants as invaders who need to be stopped, contained and combatted. The media which generated this public opinion succeeds in telling the narrative that frame migrants and refugees for social and political agenda-setting. The media vuvuzela effectively emphasizes that immigrants and refugees are threatening the resilience of the European societies, its fragile national economies and its security. Especially the latter is used to convince European citizens that terrorism is connected to immigration. And it is working as we see the huge gains made by Right wing and extreme rights political parties around Europe, some of them winning elections and forming a government that will eject and reject refugees and migrants.

It is true that we view media as an important tool for managing the increasing diversity in society and promoting inclusion. But for so far the media especially in Europe has not met that criteria, instead they have played a central role in framing refugees and migrants entering the shores of Europe as a Tsunami of crisis. This negative reporting has contributed to the hostile attitudes amongst European citizens towards refugees and migrants. As a result the discourse around refugees and migration in Europe has become a security threat. As a result we see an adversity and harsh treatment of refugees and migrants going unabated.

We can say with certainty that the odds are defeating the even, the few organizations coming to the aid of refugees are either getting fatigue, frustrated or losing subsidy from governments that is becoming more hostile to refugees and migrants. It seem as if there is no way back turning the tide from worst, to bad and to better. We cannot hope alone on the media to start reframing a frame they had built with a picture that shows a dangerous invading army. Migrants themselves should start building a new frame with a picture telling their own story from their own perspective. As the old adage goes; if the lion does not tell its own story the hunter will. ”