For those left behind, the migrants who survive the journey to build a new life in Europe represent success and an income. With poverty and violence at home, the risks taken to cross desert and sea are seen as worth taking Finding a decent job in a society that had given up on him was no longer an option. At 33, Awaso (not his real name) was a loser in every sense of the word. A high-school dropout in west Africa, he had tried his hand at everything possible – including petty theft – to earn a living and raise a family.  As one door after another closed on his dream for a better life, he set his sights on Europe. It was the next logical thing to do. Several of his ne’er-do-well schoolmates had done the same thing and it had worked. One with whom he kept in touch re