The wager of political hospitality: Introduction to themed articles

In this article I present a political analysis of hospitality, underlining the power relations that are involved with its practice. Because hospitality is consubstantial with boundaries, it is an apparatus both to welcome and control, which allows the passage of outsiders while legitimating the separation between inside and outside. Thus, the philosophical debate surrounding hospitality appears less relevant than the evaluation of the reasons why it matters to choose policies that involve hospitality. This wager maintains that inclusion – and participation of those included – is the bedrock of both hospitality and democracy.