Showing papers on "Diaspora published in 2019"

Between Arab and White : race and ethnicity in the early Syrian American diaspora

Abstract: List of Illustrations Acknowledgments Note on Terms and Transliterations Introduction 1. From Internal to International Migration 2. Claiming Whiteness: Syrians and Naturalization Law 3. Nation and Migration: Emergent Arabism and Diasporic Nationalism 4. The Lynching of Nola Romey: Syrian Racial Inbetweenness in the Jim Crow South 5. Marriage and Respectability in the Era of Immigration Restriction Conclusion Epilogue: Becoming Arab American Notes Bibliography Index

Sending States and the Making of Intra-Diasporic Politics: Turkey and Its Diaspora(s):

Abstract: The multiple politics and identities of many contemporary diasporic configurations raise a number of important conceptual issues for the study of diaspora politics, including what counts as a “dias...

Governing Armenia: The Politics of Development and the Making of Global Diaspora

Abstract: Author(s): Zablotsky, Veronika | Advisor(s): Dent, Gina | Abstract: This dissertation reconsiders the history of Armenian displacement from the standpoint of feminist and postcolonial theory. It investigates how colonial imaginaries of the Armenian nation were produced by trans-imperial entanglements between the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean, and the North Atlantic since the early modern period in order to develop a postcolonial critique of neoliberal development in post-Soviet Armenia. Building on Edward Said’s framework of Orientalism, it argues that constructions of Armenians as representatives of the “West” in the “East” not only disarticulated Armenian claims to indigeneity in West Asia but also facilitated the global expansion of colonial logics of race and empire. The four chapters of this thesis deploy a mixed methodology that combines empirical and archival research with analyses of textual and visual materials to rethink the concept of emancipation in West Asia. They draw on a range of sources from novels and memoirs, including "The Life and Adventures of Joseph Emin" (1792), to diplomatic reports, newspaper articles, and naturalization cases that determined whether Armenians were to be categorized as “free white persons” in the United States. Furthermore, they discuss the silent film "Auction of Souls" (1919) alongside images and photographs of Armenian orphans by Near East Relief, the writings of Fridtjof Nansen and Karen Jeppe, among others, as well as images and illustrations in an Armenian-language Soviet women’s journal. Based on open-ended interviews and participant observation among diasporic reformers in post-Soviet Armenia’s non-governmental development sector, this thesis demonstrates that neoliberal development in post-Soviet Armenia actualizes colonial logics that preceded and exceded Soviet statecraft. By contrasting the early Soviet project of women’s emancipation with the inter-war mandate system in the Middle East, and colonial subjection by the English joint-stock corporation in South Asia, it develops an alternative account of globalization that offers a postcolonial approach to postsocialism and diaspora in West Asia. Drawing on critical race and political theory, it concludes that moving toward collective futures beyond the colonial gaze will require emancipation from the logic of development, or “developmentality,” as a rationality of government.

Identity and Positioning in Algerian and Franco-Algerian Contemporary Art

Abstract: Identity and belonging increasingly feature as themes in the work of contemporary artists, a focus that seems particularly felt by those artists who either personally or through their families have experienced dispersal and migration. The thesis explores how fourteen Algerian and Franco-Algerian artists position themselves and are positioned by others to identity and community. The difficult intertwined histories of Algeria and France fraught with the consequences of colonisation, the impact of migration, and, in Algeria, civil war, provides a rich terrain for the exploration of identity formation. Positionality theory is used to analyse the process of identity formation in the artists and how this developed over the course of their careers and in their art. An important part of the analysis is concerned with how the artists positioned themselves consciously or inadvertently to fixed or fluid conceptions of identity and how this was reflected in their artworks. The thesis examines the complex politics of identity and belonging that extends beyond nationality and diaspora and implicates a range of other identifications including that of class, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and career choice. The research addresses a gap in contemporary art scholarship by targeting a specific group of artists and their work and examining how they negotiate, in an increasingly globalised world, their relationship to identity including nationality and diaspora. The thesis foregrounds the ways in which this negotiation interacts with their careers, their art and the art market. The thesis begins with an outline of the methodological approach. Positioning to identity is then examined in the background, education, professional development and art of three international artists, Kader Attia, Adel Abdessemed and Saâdane Afif. Analysis then focuses on the artwork of the eleven remaining artists through the themes of history and memory, journey and narrative and gendered space.

Conceptualizing ‘diaspora diplomacy’: Territory and populations betwixt the domestic and foreign

Abstract: This article bridges diaspora studies and diplomacy studies by proposing the concept of ‘diaspora diplomacy’, which considers the components of diplomacy and the changing relationships that diasporas have with states and other diplomatic actors. First, we ask who are the key actors engaged in diaspora diplomacy? Second, how is diplomatic work enacted by and through diasporas? Third, what are the geographies of diaspora diplomacy? Diaspora diplomacy directs researchers to reconsider the distinction between domestic and foreign policy, and the territorial dimensions of both diaspora and diplomacy. We engage with assemblage theory, highlighting the polylateral and multi-directional aspects of diaspora diplomacy.

Toward a definition of diaspora

Abstract: With the emergence of diaspora studies as a field, scholars from different disciplines have offered diverse definitions of the concept of diaspora. Thus far, scholarly debates about what constitute...

Human Geopolitics: States, Emigrants, and the Rise of Diaspora Institutions

Abstract: This book describes and explains how diaspora engagement institutions have spread globally and begun to unleash a new wave of human geopolitics. Migration has become an urgent priority around the world and at every level of government, but most research still focuses exclusively on immigration policy, even while most governments care more deeply about emigration and the transnational involvements of emigrants and their descendants in the diaspora. Liberal democracies long eschewed emigration controls, which may violate freedom of exit and interfere in other countries’ domestic affairs. But this is changing: in the past quarter century, more than half of all United Nations member states have established a government office devoted to ‘their’ people abroad. What explains the rise of these ‘diaspora institutions’, and how does it relate to the political geographies of decolonization, regional integration and global migration governance since World War II? In addressing these questions, this book reports quantitative data covering all UN members from 1936–2015, and fieldwork with high-level policy makers across sixty states. It shows how, in many world regions, the unregulated spread of diaspora institutions is unleashing a wave of ‘human geopolitics’, involving state competition over people rather than territory. The book suggests the development of stronger guiding principles and evaluation frameworks to govern state-diaspora relations in an era of unprecedented global interdependence.

Performing cultural identities and transnational ‘imaginaries’: fashion and beauty practices as diasporic spaces among young London Congolese

Abstract: This thesis critically examines a range of transnational fashion and beauty practices as narrative spaces employed by young London Congolese to embody their individual and collective racial, ethnic and gender identities. It investigates how they re-think and narrate their cultural heritage through forms of body performances and how these are shaped by the multicultural context of London. The ways in which these cultural practices are received by the Congolese group as well as by members of different communities are also assessed. The study documents the production and consumption of body performances as a new archive of primary source material, scrutinizing the cultural and economic contribution that young Congolese make to the “super-diverse” (2007) matrix of the city, and considers in particular their status as a “minority within minority” (Pachi et al., 2010). In so doing, the research adds a new perspective to the existing knowledge on the Congolese diasporic presence in London as well as providing a framework for a comparative study of other diasporic groups. “Multi-sited ethnography” (Marcus, 1995) is applied as the principal qualitative analytical approach to collect and examine data which emerged organically from the field. The notion of the performance of cultural identities in everyday life and of ritual experiences is combined with this approach as the secondary theoretical underpinning. In addition, a multidisciplinary framework is used specifically to inform the body performances selected as exemplary case studies. Conceptions of race, ethnicity, gender and transnationalism formulated by these multi-sited but localised “diaspora spaces” (Brah, 1996) are therefore analysed through a grounded and theoretical approach. The findings show that everyday experiences, cultural memories, storytelling and symbolism can be powerfully inscribed upon rituals of the body. Through fashion and beauty practices, young London Congolese actively fabricate their own narratives of migration and “traditional” forms of belonging to the homeland, while voicing alternative messages which move beyond conservative values, beliefs and costumes of older generations of Congolese and Black Africans in the diaspora. The performance of cultural identities figures as multiple, shifting and contradictory in the ways it both encapsulates the notion of “authenticity” and the display of global ways of being developed in multicultural London settings. This study, therefore, argues that fashion and beauty expressions of young London Congolese generate multi-layered meanings, not only resulting in the aesthetic, socio-cultural and symbolic representation of diasporic identity expressions and life histories, but also as valuable political and economic sites of agency, transformation, commodification and subversion.

The ethno-demographic impact of co-ethnic citizenship in Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract: Many countries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) grant preferential access to citizenship to co-ethnics living outside their borders. This overlaps with several key regional demographic trends, s...

“What I Believe Can Rescue That Nation”: Diaspora Working to Transform Education in Fragility and Conflict

Abstract: This study examines diaspora’s engagement in education development work in their fragile and conflict-affected countries of origin. Through analysis of 28 in-depth interviews with diaspora from fou...

Migration ‘against the tide’: location and Jewish diaspora entrepreneurs

Abstract: Diaspora entrepreneurs contribute to regional development through business, ideas and resources. Most diasporas originate from migration from developing and emerging economies and are captu...

With and without Zanzibar: liminal diaspora voices and the memory of the revolution

Abstract: This paper explores discursive narratives as inextricably linked to the construction of identity, place and history by a number of interviewed individuals. From an interactional sociolinguistics (cf. De Fina & Georgakopoulou, 2012) perspective, the study explores the context of the East African diaspora (Georgiou, 2006; Manger & Assal, 2006 among many others) as the interviewed participants are all Zanzibar-born individuals for whom the relationship with the island and its history is crucial to their construction of selfhood. The study analyses the narrative voices (De Fina & Georgakopolou, 2008) of those individuals who decided to leave Zanzibar at the time of the 1964 violent political upheaval never to return and those who, on the contrary, decided to go back after a lengthy period abroad. However, more than establishing a division between these two groups, the paper highlights how these individuals take a different positioning (Bamberg, 1997) towards Zanzibar and its history and construct a range of identities in the context of the interview. Keywords: Identity, diaspora, liminality, hegemonic, narrative.

Group-Based Relative Deprivation Explains Endorsement of Extremism Among Western-Born Muslims:

Abstract: Although jihadist threats are regarded as foreign, most Islamist terror attacks in Europe and the United States have been orchestrated by Muslims born and raised in Western societies. In the presen...

A diagnosis of contemporary forms of racism, race and nationalism: a conversation with Professor Paul Gilroy

Abstract: Described as one of the most intellectually formidable cultural and social theorists of our time, Paul Gilroy has reshaped debates on racism, nationalism and multiculturalism. In April 2018, Prof. ...

Suppressing transnationalism: bringing constraints into the study of transnational political action

Abstract: Studies of transnationalism typically account for homeland-oriented transnational political action (TPA) as the product of varying political opportunities. Yet, the opportunity-driven perspective overlooks why some immigrant and diaspora communities refrain from engaging in homeland politics or are forestalled in their attempts to do so. We address this shortcoming by theorizing how sociopolitical conditions can constrain TPA. Drawing inductively from primary data on Pakistani, Syrian, Libyan, and Yemeni diasporas as well as secondary sources, we identify four sources of constraint: 1) geopolitics and interstate relations; 2) origin-country authoritarianism; 3) weak origin-country governance; and 4) exclusionary receiving-country contexts. By demonstrating how these socio-political forces suppress TPA, we contribute a new theoretical approach that emphasizes the conditions and relations that hinder cross-border political action. In sum, the article illustrates the theoretical importance of understanding variation in TPA and the utility of examining negative cases in the study of immigrant and diaspora transnational politics.

Digital diaspora: An overview of the research areas of migration and new media through a narrative literature review

Abstract: Academic research on migration and the use of new media constitutes a growing field. The first studies dealing explicitly with the field appeared in the end of the 1990s. Now, it has become an esta ...

Diaspora organisations, transnational practices and development: Ghanaians in the Netherlands

Abstract: This study, which was undertaken in the Netherlands and Ghana, contributes to the migration and development-nexus debate by using a combination of concepts – ‘agency’, ‘policy window’, ‘here and there’ and ‘win-win-win’ – to shed light on the transnational practices and the impact of these activities in the country of residence and origin Empirically, the study addresses the challenges inherent in diaspora engagement initiatives by policy makers, aimed at harnessing the development potential of migration through remittances It emphasises the collective dimensions of diaspora development potential by bringing to the fore the transformative role of diaspora organisations, with all their different organisational capacities The findings of this study show the relevance of diaspora collective organising and their impact from ‘here and there’ and ‘win-win-win’ perspectives Research methods used The study used a qualitative methodological approach and a multi-sited ethnographic lens to enhance an in-depth examination of the historic, political, socioeconomic context and the social relationships influencing diaspora transnational collective activities at the local and national levels both in the country of residence and origin Data collection, included in-depth interviews, focus groups discussion, participant observations, process tracing and analysis of secondary sources Key conclusions • Associational life among diasporas is mainly for the welfare of its members in the host society (‘here’), linked to integration, participation and safety nets against vulnerabilities, ties with the country of origin (‘there’), individual and collective interests to improve the conditions of those left behind These undertakings in these areas resolve socio-economic and emotional issues that would otherwise constitute political and policy problems for institutions in the country of residence and origin • The three main significant categories of diaspora organisations are hometown associations, migrant development NGOs and umbrella organisations Their activities have a ‘here and there’ orientation focused on public service delivery, have the potential for broad impact, and are relatively inclusive in nature (broad reach – both direct and indirect) within a ‘win-win- win’ framework • A combination of political opportunity structures and policy windows in the countries of residence and origin and the dual identity and multiple layers of belonging of members of the diaspora, which are constantly being reconstructed and renegotiated, are central to diaspora transnational collective activities and their transformative potential • Agency within diaspora organisations is crucial to how they seek to influence the policy agenda through collective action aimed at various streams (problem, policy and political) with a ‘here and there’ orientation This also applies to the meanings attached to existing opportunities or emerging policy windows for access to opportunities (resources and space for influencing policy agenda) • Diaspora transnational collective activities constitute part of the social development processes in multiple contexts and inherently have ‘here and there’ and ‘win-win-win’ orientations in terms of the impact felt at different levels (individual, family, community, local, national and international) Key recommendations • Create an enabling political, institutional and policy environment : Conditions (migration regimes) need to be created that open up opportunities for diasporas to return to their country of origin and facilitate circular transfer through transnational collective activities between the country of residence and the country of origin, which requires coherence among the different institutions at the different levels at which diasporas operate • Institutionalise diaspora participation in policy processes in the country of residence and origin : Inclusive consultation mechanisms can tap into the complementary, bridging and interlocutory role of diasporas and collective organising in its diverse forms within migrant communities • Scale-up innovative and policy relevant diaspora collective initiatives : A menu of policy options for scaling-up the best practices and embedding them in local policy frameworks for diaspora engagement This include rethinking of strategies for sustaining diaspora collective initiatives that add value to local policies on immigrant integration and participation and that harness the development potential of migration • Develop policy frameworks that promote reciprocity and ‘win-win-win’ scenarios : Diaspora contribution to development in their country of residence and their country of origin, can derive from diaspora entrepreneurship and other forms of reverse flows through transnational linkages, facilitated by multiple layers of belonging This calls for a complementarity framework in which initiatives taken by diaspora organisations are linked to the priorities of government, municipalities and local communities • Extend and enhance diaspora capacities : Different categories of diaspora organisations as part of civil society possess ideas, skills, expertise, experience and cross-cultural knowledge that, if recognised, could be leveraged innovatively for collaborations and partnerships that enhance development cooperation projects and promote investment in emerging markets This requires structured institutional support and sustained funding for diaspora initiatives within the framework of public-private partnerships

The micro-dynamics of power and performance in focus groups: an example from discussions on national identity with the South Sudanese diaspora in the UK:

Abstract: In recent years there has been an increasing recognition that both the content of focus group discussions and the interaction that takes place form indivisible facets of focus group data Interaction, however, is not a neutral activity but one that is infused with the dynamics of power in wider society and in the immediate context of the discussion I use Bourdieu’s notion of fields of power to analyse focus group discussions on national identity with South Sudanese diaspora in the UK I argue that the micro-dynamics of power in focus group discussions have relevance to the relations of power in the population group from which participants are purposively sampled and, consequently, their observation enriches research findings Further, I observe that the guidance literature on the conduct of focus group discussions encourages power-reduction strategies, and requires updating to allow space for the power-infused character of social interaction to manifest itself

Re-imagining Black Masculinity: Praxis of Kenyan Men in Toronto

Abstract: This study examined Black masculinity, the representation of Black men, and by extension the Black community. Black men in North America historically have been racially targeted and profiled in employment and education (school/prison pipeline). Black masculinity scholarship has actively represented this demography through diverse scholarships. While this may be the case, the opposite is equally true; the scholarly lens does not provide the overall picture of Black men. This exploratory/descriptive qualitative Afrocentric Indigenous narrative study applied post-colonial, anti-colonial, and critical masculinity theoretical frameworks to argue that Black masculinity is implicated in epistemological violence and imperialism. The study encompassed semi-structured interviews with 10 participants (Kenyan men in Toronto), allowing for open expression of their experiences. The Kenyan story has been missing in action; that is, the Kenyan racial experiences in immigration, education, and labour remain expunged and absent. Black masculinity has not focused on accents as a racial and gendered concept of erasing Kenyan men from social and political processes. The study is framed around the limits of Black masculinity and looks at immigration, education, and labour policies in Canada and how they expel Kenyan men from the body politic. Kenyan men that were interviewed said that though they are Black they are also African based on the complex act of accent multiplier..

Passed, regulated, or applied? The different stages of emigrant enfranchisement in Latin America and the Caribbean

Abstract: When are emigrants really enfranchised? Lengthy lags exist between some reforms that de jure introduced external voting and their application. In the blooming literature on emigrant enfranchisement...

Sacred remittances: money, migration and the moral economy of development in a transnational African church

Abstract: While remittances have come to play an important part in debates about migration and development, the link between religion, migration and transnational financial flows has yet to be understood in ...

Multilingualism, Facebook and the Iranian diaspora

Abstract: The project investigates aspects of multilingualism on Facebook, in particular code selection/code switching by language users of Iranian descent in a Belgium. The focus is three-fold: (i) the distributional salience of the various languages used, (ii) their functional role in the interactional architecture of social media, (iii) the connections with the construction of a diasporic space characterized by fragmented/dislocated identities.

Redefining African Regions for Linking Open-Source Data

Abstract: In recent years, an increasing number of online archival databases of primary sources related to the history of the African diaspora and slavery have become freely and readily accessible for scholarly and public consumption. This proliferation of digital projects and databases presents a number of challenges related to aggregating data geographically according to the movement of people in and out of Africa across time and space. As a requirement to linking data of open-source digital projects, it has become necessary to delimit the entire continent of precolonial Africa during the era of the slave trade into broad regions and sub-regions that can allow the grouping of data effectively and meaningfully.

A diasporic right to the city: the production of a Moroccan diaspora space in Granada, Spain

Abstract: In this paper, I bring together ideas of ‘diaspora space’ and ‘the right to the city’ and empirically demonstrate how the formation of diasporas is frequently dependent on migrants attainin...