Ioffe, Yulia;
Viterbo, Hedi;
(2026)
Reassessing Age Assessment: When the Violence of Age Meets the Violence of the Border.
Human Rights Quarterly
(In press).
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Abstract
Young refugees often lack knowledge or proof of their chronological age. To determine eligibility for child-specific rights, countries use various age assessment methods, criticized for inaccuracy, harm, lack of consent, and ethical violations. However, the core practice of distinguishing refugees by age remains unquestioned. We argue this distinction is ageist, essentialist, and violent, relying on socially constructed stereotypes that reduce refugees to their age while disregarding their diverse experiences, needs, and abilities. Similar issues arise in asylum claims based on sexuality or gender identity, reinforcing national borders and restricting global movement.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Reassessing Age Assessment: When the Violence of Age Meets the Violence of the Border |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Publisher version: | https://www.press.jhu.edu/journals/human-rights-qu... |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | age assessment, refugees, children, LGBT, essentialism, ageism, violence |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10206436 |
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