Female narratives of ‘new’ citizens’ belonging(s) and identities in Europe: case studies from the Netherlands and Britain

Halleh Ghorashi, Ulrike M Vieten

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    14 Citations (Scopus)
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    Abstract

    Public discourses on citizenship, identity and nationality, which link geographical borders and the political boundaries of a community, are infused with tensions and contradictions. This paper illustrates how these tensions are interwoven with multilayered notions of home, belonging, migration, citizenship and individual’s ‘longing just to be’, focusing on the Dutch and the British context. The narratives of a number of Dutch and British women, who either immigrated to the respective countries or were born to immigrants, illustrate how the growing rigid integration and assimilative discourses in Europe contradict an individual anchoring in national and local communities. The narratives of women participating in these studies show multilayered angles of belonging presenting an alternative to the increasing strong argument for a fixed notion of positioning and national belonging. The female ‘new’ citizens in our study tell stories of individual choices, social mobility and a sense of multiple belonging in and across different communities.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)725-741
    Number of pages17
    JournalIdentities: Global Studies in Culture and Power
    Volume19
    Issue number6
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 02 Jan 2013

    Keywords

    • Dutch and British citizenship; migration; de-territorialisation
    • Narrative Methods
    • Politics of Belonging

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