Personal Narratives of Family and Ethnic Identity: Orangewomen in Scotland and England,c.1940–2010

Using interviews with 10 Orangewomen from England and Scotland, this article analyses how women could articulate a sense of ethnic identity through membership of the Orange Order during the second half of the twentieth century. What emerged from their reflections was a sense of how Irish Protestant identity interacted with, and was shaped by, Scottish, English and British identities. This article argues that these women's identity was rooted, for most, in a family background in Scotland and Ireland, which was strongly intertwined with their membership of the Orange Order. The example of the female Orange Order demonstrates that identities can be formed through the close interplay of family and ethnic associational life, suggesting ways in which historians of migration might further explore the interaction of migrants' public and private lives.     

What makes a Gael? Identity,language and ancestry in the Scottish Gàidhealtachd

Scholars know far less about ‘national identity’ than ‘nations’ and ‘nationalism’. The authors argue that the concept is sociologically important and briefly discuss its relationship with language. They examine empirically how people living in the Gàidhealtachd, the area of Scotland associated with Gaelic language and culture, whether they are Gaelic speakers or not, whether incomers or not, go about their territorial identity business. The article shows how respondents’ Gaelic identity relates to their British and Scottish identity; how people living in the Gàidhealtachd assess putative claims to a Gaelic identity based variously on language, residence and ancestry; and how they see the balance between ‘cultural’ and ‘political’ elements in Gaelic. The authors argue that to study ‘what makes a Gael?’ highlights the key role territorial identity plays in connecting social structure to social action, and also that identity provides a set of meanings and understandings through which people experience social structure and feel empowered to act.     

Does civil society speak for the people? evidence from a survey of Scottish teachers

It has been claimed by many writers recently that civil society can lead a process of political renewal in the liberal democracies. However, the extent to which civil society is in touch with popular feeling has been challenged from both the right and the left. The paper examines one currently fluid case: civil society in Scotland, which in 1999 acquired its first parliament for three centuries following an emphatic referendum vote in 1997 in favour of setting up such an institution. The paper discusses the general issues and themes concerning civil society, explains the significance of the Scottish case, and then uses survey data to compare the views of one segment of Scottish civil society (school teachers) with those of the Scottish population generally. Teachers are studied because of the several key roles which they play in civil society and in social reproduction. The paper concludes that this segment of civil society is indeed close to the views of the general population (probably closer than Scottish members of the UK parliament), and that the new Scottish parliament will have to respect the legitimacy of the established civic institutions if it is to engage with popular concerns.     

Who are we? Prohlematising national identity1

While the concem with ‘identity politics’ has grown in recent years, there are few studies of the ways in which people order and negotiate their national identities. The study reported here focuses on the identities used by members of the arts and landed elites in Scotland in the assertion of perceived cultural differences between Scots and non-Scots. These two groups have good reason to be sensitive to the problematic and negotiated nature of national identity in a changing cultural and political context in Scotland. The raw materials of national identity, in particular, birth, residence and ancestry, are used by individuals in these groups to make claims which are sustained by and through social interaction in the course of which various ‘identity claims’ are made and received in various ways.     

“I was discriminated against because I was seen as PRC-Chinese”: The negotiation between ethnicity and nationalism among Taiwanese migrants in Australia

Research on race and ethnicity has focused on conditions under which solidarity will be developed to consolidate collective benefits. For example, facing racial discrimination can bring large-scale affiliations (e.g., people of color, Latinos, or Asians) to fight against racial injustice. Focusing on the negotiation and struggle between ethnicity and nationalism among Taiwanese migrants in Australia—a politicizing context associated with a prior definition of Chinese category, despite inherent differences within it, this article shows the complexity of ethnicity when ethnic identity/solidarity intersects with nationalism and racial discrimination. I argue that Taiwanese migrants attach specific meanings to the ethnic (Chinese) category and constantly connect to and shift its boundaries in different contexts. Meanwhile, they also make a distinction between racial discrimination from white Australians and political hostility from PRC-Chinese. This article proposes a procedural and contextual understanding of ethnic identity, solidarity, nationalism, and boundary making/unmaking within the Chinese category as it is enacted in Taiwanese migrants' everyday lives. It also examines situational variability in the salience of ethnic identifications, racialization of the ethnic category, and people's interpretation of ethnic and national identity when facing racial discrimination.     

Becoming Less Illegal: Deservingness Frames and Undocumented Migrant Incorporation

Over the last two decades, research on unauthorized migration has departed from the equation of migrant illegality with absolute exclusion, emphasizing that formal exclusion typically results in subordinate inclusion. Irregular migrants integrate through informal support networks, the underground economy, and political activities. But they also incorporate into formal institutions, through policy divergence between levels of government, bureaucratic sabotage, or fraud. The incorporation of undocumented migrants involves not so much invisibility as camouflage – presenting the paradox that camouflage improves with integration. As it reaches the formal level of claims and procedures, legalization brings up the issue of the frames through which legal deservingness is asserted. Looking at the moral economy embedded in claims and programs, we examine a series of frame tensions: between universal and particular claims to legal status, between legalization based on vulnerability and that based on civic performance, between economic and cultural deservingness, and between the policy level and individual subjectivity. We show that restrictionist governments face a dilemma when their constructions of “good citizenship” threaten to extend to “deserving” undocumented migrants. Hence, they may simultaneously emphasize deservingness frames while limiting irregular migrants’ opportunities to deserve, effectively making deservingness both a civic obligation and a civic privilege.     

Free floating in the cosmopolis? Exploring the identity‐belonging of transnational knowledge workers

In this article I explore what I call the ‘identity‐belonging’ of transnational knowledge workers, a diverse group of serially migrating career professionals who have spent extended periods of time in at least three countries, usually following career opportunities. Unlike most recent writing on transnationalism, which focuses on enduring connections of migrants with their ‘home’ countries/places, here I explore a transnationalism that may transcend the national, and generally the territorial, principle, with repercussions for identity‐belonging. In this context, how transnational knowledge workers position themselves towards belonging to a nation and towards the idea of cosmopolitanism is of particular interest. From data collected through in‐depth interviews in Australia and Indonesia, I conclude that their globally recognized profession forms the central axis of their identity‐belonging, alongside a weak identification with their nation of origin. The feeling of belonging to and identifying with particular locales and local communities was articulated flexibly and instrumentally in association with professional and wider social networks, while no primordial territorial attachments could be identified.     

Ethnic Community and Ethnic Boundaries in a “Sauce‐Scented Neighborhood”1

This article investigates the problem of ethnic boundary making in a changing context. Our case is Boston’s North End, a historically Italian neighborhood undergoing changes to its social and physical environment, making the ethnic definition of neighborhood identity and belonging more difficult though not less salient. Consequently, participants in the workings of the neighborhood—residents, business owners, politicians—face challenges of both boundary placement (who is Italian and who is not?), as well as cultural content (what does it mean to be “Italian”?). Rather than viewing Italian ethnicity as simply weakening over time, we argue that the North End shows ethnicity is in a stage of category divergence, where the still‐dominant ethnic identity is juxtaposed not against another ethnic out‐group, but at various times against boundaries of class and race, commercial and community values, even city political boundaries. Drawing on ethnographic research and in‐depth interviews, we describe three group identity frames that illustrate these processes and reveal how Italian ethnicity continues to animate discourse and action in the neighborhood.     

Retired Tibetan migrants’ adaptation experiences in Chengdu,China

Diverse types of mobility have emerged in contemporary China, among which consumption-led ethnic retired migrants have received little academic attention. This study addresses the seasonal mobility of retired Tibetan migrants who previously had careers in governmental and public sectors in Tibet. After retirement, they purchase second-home apartments in Chengdu for health and leisure reasons. Through semistructured interviews, nonparticipant observation, and the application of Schnell’s multidimensional model, this article analyzes the migration and adaptation experiences of retired Tibetan migrants in Chengdu. It is revealed that, physically, they reside in mixed communities and share activity spaces with the local people, and, socially, maintain their life-long social relationships and form new local relationships. They feel satisfied and comfortable in their new situation, maintain their primary identity as Tibetan, and gradually establish a sense of home in Chengdu. Their political privilege and governmental support in the destination also contribute to their positive migration and adaptation experiences.     

Mobilisation through early activation and school engagement – the story from Scotland

This paper explores the experience of 16–17 year olds participating in the Scottish independence referendum and discusses whether it can be seen as positive or negative considering civic attitudes and participation. Using data from two comprehensive and representative surveys of 14–17 year olds, it engages empirically with claims about young people's alleged political (dis-)interest and provides qualifications for commonly believed stories of young people as mere recipients of information given to them by parents and teachers.

The paper develops a positive view of young people's engagement in the referendum process and suggests that inputs from parents and schools actually have distinguishable effects on young people, who do not simply ‘follow the lead’ of others uncritically. The analyses suggest that the discussion of political issues in the classroom (rather than the simple delivery of civics-style classes per se) may act as a positive factor in the political socialisation of young people, but suggests that further research is required to examine these effects beyond the specific context of the Scottish independence referendum in particular in relation to questions about whether reducing the voting age to 16 could be expected to generally lead to positive outcomes.     

'Hail Brither Scots O' Coaly Tyne': Networking and Identity among Scottish Migrants in the North-east of England, ca. 1860-2000

Despite their significant presence throughout the modern era, Scottish emigrants to England have been neglected as a topic of research. At various times, Scottish in-migration to the north-east of England was greater than any other English region both numerically and proportionately. Its visibility was evident in terms of cultural expression through the myriad organisations established from the 1860s to the 1970s. Scots, and their descendants, made a vital contribution to the economic and political development of the region. This article examines the formation and operation of Scottish ethnic networks. It will explore the wider issue of the nature of Scottish migration to the north-east, the strength of ethnic affiliation within this group and the range of networks used to overcome dislocation or alienation. The central findings draw on a rich variety of sources including the records of local Burns Clubs, St Andrew's Societies and Pipe Bands, supplemented by local press material and oral testimony.     

Cross‐border,cross‐ethnic,and transnational networks of a trapped minority: Israeli Arab citizens in Tel Aviv‐Jaffa

In this article, I provide a framework for studying the transnational networks of minority members as a political phenomenon. I make two claims. First, it is necessary to take into account the state and its capacity to limit transnational networks if one is to capture, analytically, the full range of such networks. Second, it is important to extend the theoretical framework of transnationalism to include populations other than migrants and to account for networks established by national minority members whose loyalty to the state can be challanged. I offer a typology of networks organized along two major axes – the state in‐border–cross‐border axis and the ethnic or religious identity axis. These two axes yield different types of in‐border and cross‐border, intranational and transnational networks. I base these claims on an analysis of four case studies of cross‐border and cross‐ethnic networks maintained by Israeli Palestinian citizens in Tel Aviv‐Jaffa.     

Rethinking migration in the digital age: transglocalization and the Somali diaspora

In this study, we examine the transnational networks of the Somali diaspora online. We explore the claims that the web signifies a shift towards a de‐territorialized, transnational diaspora, which constructs its identity and engagement around a transnational imagined community. Based on a network and web content analysis, we assert that the claims about the transnational as the territorial locus of identity and engagement should be revisited. The analysis shows that the Somali diaspora's engagement has a specific multi‐territorial topology through which information and resources are exchanged and a hybrid identity is constructed. Somalis' online engagement, however, is mainly directed towards community‐based practices and social integration in their host‐land, as opposed to transnational advocacy for the homeland. We argue that web data show a particular territorial arrangement and engagement, which we conceptualize as transglocalization, meaning local, networked formations existing alongside the national and transnational, each operating with awareness of the other yet acting separately. The study demonstrates that online network analysis offers promising approaches to diasporic social integration, policy‐making and issue advocacy.     

Ethnicity and place in a ‘disturbed city’: ways of belonging in Imphal,Manipur

This article explores the relationships between ethnicity, place and belonging in the city of Imphal, capital of the state of Manipur in India’s Northeast border region. Manipur has experienced decades of conflict from ethno-nationalist separatism, inter-ethnic territorial disputes and counter-insurgency operations. These ethnic conflicts play out on the urban landscape of Imphal. Control of the city from above is diffused among the civilian government and the armed forces. Non-state actors such as insurgent groups and ethnic organizations exert their own control from below. On such unstable ground, struggles by residents seeking to create place and a sense of belonging affirm ethnic boundaries. These boundaries are not static and the lines between inclusion and exclusion are continually redrawn along existing and emerging fault-lines among the population. Yet these boundaries are also transcended in unusual ways that may seem trivial but in Imphal are essential to realizing alternative ways of belonging.     

Irregular Workers or Ethnic Kin? Post‐1990s Labour Migration from Bulgaria to Turkey

This paper addresses the invisibility of the post‐1990s irregular migration flows from Bulgaria to Turkey in the literature despite the increasingly significant number of such migrants. I suggest that this invisibility stems partially from a problem of classification that has to do with implicit suppositions about ethnicity and migration. The post‐1990s Turkish immigrants from Bulgaria are not specified in accounts of irregular migrant flows directed towards Turkey since they are assumed to belong to the category of ethnic “return” migrants: Because of their ethnic identity as Turkish, all Turkish migrants from Bulgaria tend to get considered as part of the intermittent “return” migration waves from Bulgaria, the most notable and well‐known of these being the fight of more than 300,000 Turks in 1989. However, while the ethnic affiliation of the post‐1990s migrants from Bulgaria renders them invisible as irregular migrants within scholarly migrant typologies, the same ethnic affiliation does not necessarily work to their advantage when it comes to their legal and social reception in Turkey. Based on ethnographic fieldwork that prioritizes micro‐level analysis from below, the paper demonstrates that the self designated ethnic affiliation of these migrants, counterpoised against their social marginalization as “the Bulgarian” domestics, heightens the paradoxes of belonging and affects migration strategies. The paper thus underscores the significance of ethnic affiliation as a factor that needs to be adequately taken into account in describing the present and in assessing the future of this particular migratory pattern.     

Migrant Membership as an Instituted Process: Transnationalization,the State and The Extra‐Territorial Conduct of Mexican Politics1

How should we conceptualize membership, citizenship and political community in a world where migrants and their home states increasingly maintain and cultivate their formal and informal ties? This study analyzes the extra‐territorial conduct of Mexican. politics and the emergence of new migrant membership practices and relations between migrants and home states. Standard globalist, transnationalist or citizenship theories cannot properly contextualize and analyze such practices. I propose that we rethink the concept of membership in a political community not only as a Marshallian status granted by states, but also as an instituted process embedded within four other institutions and processes: home state domestic politics; the home state's relationship to the world system; a semi‐autonomous transnational civil society created in part by migration; and the context of reception of migrants in the United States. A main conclusion is that the state itself plays a key role in creating transnational political action by migrants and new migrant membership practices. The article draws on printed sources and interviews and ethnography done since 1990.     

Sense of Belonging and Life Satisfaction among Post‐1990 Immigrants in Israel

In this paper we contribute to the study of immigrants’ integration into the host society by focusing on two subjective indicators of integration: life satisfaction and sense of belonging. The analysis is performed on post‐1990 immigrants in Israel with data obtained from the ‘Immigrant Survey’ conducted by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. The findings show that while life satisfaction is affected by all forms of incorporation (structural, acculturation, identificational), immigrants’ sense of belonging to Israeli society seems mainly related to processes of identity re‐definition in the host society, and mostly determined by strength of Jewish identity, ideological motives for going to Israel, and the ways by which immigrants perceive they are defined by Israelis (as a member of the majority group or as a member of an ethnic group). The results also reveal that when utilizing SEM procedure for estimating simultaneous effects of both subjective measures of assimilation, sense of belonging to the new society strongly affects immigrants’ life satisfaction but not the other way around. We discuss the findings and their meaning in light of theory and within the context of Israeli society.     

Ethnic mobilization in a multicultural society

The aim of the present paper is to demystify those anxieties that emerge out of the presence of ethnic minorities in developed capitalist societies in showing that these relate as much, if not more, to misconceptions about the issue of identity proper, that of national identity, as well as that of ethnic mobilization. It is argued that the relationship of immigrant minority cultures and identities to national culture and national identity can be thought of as paralleling that between class structures and identities. Ethnic mobilisation and ethnic movements can be thought of in terms of something like the class‐in‐itself problematic Ethnic groups can be seen as having a particular and distinct position in relation to economic and political resources, but whereas classes in the Marxian sense must develop their sense of identity, their forms of organisation and their culture ab initio, ethnic groups can call upon their sense of ethnicity and their forms of ethnic bonding as a resource and this may well make them more effective political actors than classes. However, whereas it is tempting, within this framework to think that out of a process of negotiation, there will emerge a multicultural society in which there is on the one hand a shared political culture of the public domain and on the other a world of private communal cultures, the actual situation is much more complex. What ethnic minorities in actuality confront is a hierarchy of cultures which have already been involved in a political struggle for the definition of a disputed shared political culture. This is bound to influence the process and character of ethnic mobilization as well as its likely outcomes.     

Argentine Migrants to Spain and Returnees: A Case for Accumulation of Civic Assets

Conceptually, this paper relies on the asset accumulation framework and identifies its relevance to work on Argentine migrants to Spain and returnees. The asset accumulation framework represents an innovative approach to understanding the complexities of migratory flows in a transnational context. In order to comprehend and tackle migration, this framework pays particular attention to investment and savings in various domains, including the financial, social, human, civic and political fields. Responding to gaps in current studies, the objective of this paper is twofold. First, it expands the asset accumulation framework by differentiating between civic and political assets. Second, using data drawn from interviews conducted among Argentine migrants and returnees in the cities of Barcelona and Buenos Aires, this paper fleshes out the definition of civic assets. The findings indicate that, for interviewees, moving to Spain implied the accumulation of civic assets that enhanced the development of a more equitable and democratic society. Respondents incorporated new civic capabilities in several areas, including increased environmental awareness and tolerance for minority groups, as well as the acquisition of knowledge about equity and labour rights. In addition, results suggest that, as a result of the migratory experience, many interviewees went through reflective processes that made them question their old presumptions about both the receiving and sending societies.