Author : Johannes Kögel
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3658438509
Total Pages : 452 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (584 download)
Book Synopsis Navigating Nationality by : Johannes Kögel
Download or read book Navigating Nationality written by Johannes Kögel and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2024-01-18 with total page 452 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In recounting their migration journey, references to nationality pervade the narratives of Zimbabweans in South Africa. Given the challenges many migrants confront based on their nationality, this presents a seeming paradox. This qualitative interview study, conducted with Zimbabwean migrants in two areas of Cape Town—Observatory and Dunoon—aims to elucidate the nuances of national self-descriptions in a demanding environment. Identifying as Zimbabwean serves as a sanctuary and a retreat, where alternative identifications often prove transient; embracing Zimbabweanness fosters an affirmative and positive self-perception, surpassing the limitations of other collective self-descriptions. Rather than pre-emptively characterizing a nationalist demeanour, the articulation of national self-description emerges as a strategic tool to navigate experiences of hostility and discrimination, while also asserting legitimate claims to equal opportunities. In this way, nationality takes a trajectory that diverges from conventional notions of nationality (and the ones of the nation-state or citizenship) as per Northern theory, contributing to alternative conceptualizations within the framework of the Global South.