Abstract

Prior to COVID-19, migrant journeys through the Mediterranean were often de-scribed with reference to the barriers posed within ‘fortress Europe’ or through registers which centre migrant's adeptness at navigating draconian immigration regimes. Between these two contexts, this paper explores how a public authority lens can assist in understanding the implications of COVID-19 and associated vaccine bureaucracies. We draw on ethnographic research on the Italian-French Alpine border and chart how ‘vaccine populism’—perpetuated in nationalist po-litical discourse as well as in the counter-commentaries of resistance offered by solidarity networks—has specific implications for migrants' access to vaccines and health information. We argue that analyses attentive to the subtle nuances of  state  and  local  politics  provide  an  important  entry  point  to  map  multi-scalar  power  dynamics  which  accompany  universal  health  policies.  Through  consid-ering the complex realities relating to Alpine crossings, we advocate from less categorising approaches to vaccinating migrants.

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