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This paper explores the different aspects of the phenomenon of migration in Greece as a case study, since the country is situated at the external borders of Europe. A field study was conducted in Athens, Greece during a period of six weeks in the spring of 2010.The most important conclusions reached incorporate that the rights of migrants are not respected in any aspect of the societal sphere, or in other words, in the three institutional pillars, the regulative, normative and cultural-cognitive. As a result, there are double standards applied to Europeans respective migrants. As a possible cause of the problematic situation described, underlying perceptions of national identity versus otherness are identified. These perceptions derive from a deeply rooted acceptance of social constructions such as national borders, as undisputable facts.

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