Pragna Rugunanan - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

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Papers by Pragna Rugunanan

Routledge eBooks, Jun 19, 2024

The Thinker

Sweden and South Africa are two major transnational destinations and attract large numbers of ref... more Sweden and South Africa are two major transnational destinations and attract large numbers of refugees and migrants, primarilydue to their ease of immigration policies. Besides their unique historical relations which can be traced back to as early as the 1890s, both countries continue to experience high volumes of mass migration and forced mobility which peaked in 2015. Following the so-called ‘Syrian refugee crisis’, Sweden witnessed the second largest asylum applications in Europe. At around the same time, South Africa experienced its highest backlog of asylum applications. It is against this backdrop of a long and diverse history of relations andongoing migration that we seek to engage with the responses of both countries to mass migration using a comparative approach. The article presents a historical perspective of migration between Sweden and South Africa and examines their ongoing migration policydebates. It concludes with an analysis of current political contestations and so...

South African review of sociology, Oct 3, 2022

Worlds Apart? Perspectives on Africa/European Union migration , 2023

IMISCOE research series, 2022

Alternation eBooks, Nov 1, 2022

This chapter explores the construction of migrant communities in a neighbourhood called Fordsburg... more This chapter explores the construction of migrant communities in a neighbourhood called Fordsburg, in Johannesburg. The purpose of the chapter is to give a brief historical overview of people of Indian origin since the early 1890s. Fordsburg was an area, a point of entry into Johannesburg, where many people of Indian origin came to reside. Fordsburg, initially constructed as a white immigrant, working-class community, quickly became home to previously indentured labourers who relocated to the then Transvaal. The neighbourhood and its history is significant to the building of communities for people of Indian origin in South Africa.

Journal of Homosexuality, 2021

Sexual diversity is a contentious topic in South Africa because many people still hold the percep... more Sexual diversity is a contentious topic in South Africa because many people still hold the perception that sexual identity can only be understood in heteronormative terms. This article adopts a feminist research approach to investigate how black gay male identities are constructed and managed at home, within friendships and in mining workplaces, drawing on data collected from five black gay male mineworkers. It opens up discussion on gay mineworkers' experiences in a country where diversity is upheld and celebrated through a democratic constitution, yet gay men must often negotiate and manage their sexual identities to fit in with the dominant heteronormative discourses present in different spaces in society, including adopting false heterosexual identities in particular spaces, which limits their freedoms. The study argues that experiences of constructing and managing black gay identities in heteronormative spaces is guided by the level of acceptance and tolerance perceived by gay people.

IMISCOE Research Series

Media images of Africa seems to suggest that the continent is characterised by mass exodus to the... more Media images of Africa seems to suggest that the continent is characterised by mass exodus to the Global North. Most African migration actually occurs within the continent. Conflict and other governance challenges, as well as poverty and relative deprivation all contribute to human mobility within the continent, as well as overseas. On the continent, South Africa is the most preferred destination by immigrants – the country has a robust economy and constitutionalism firmly grounded in the respect for human rights. Xenophobic violence has continued to erupt in the “new” South Africa and I attribute this to a culture of violence in South Africa originating from apartheid. Immigrants in South Africa experience multiple forms of discrimination and oppression which manifest in covert and overt experiences of xenophobia. Looking at South to South migration, in this chapter I investigate the consequences of intra-African migration, and particularly how xenophobia in the post-apartheid stat...

Gender and Mobility in Africa, 2018

This chapter explores the migratory experiences of Congolese, Burundian and Zimbabwean female ref... more This chapter explores the migratory experiences of Congolese, Burundian and Zimbabwean female refugees in South Africa from a feminist perspective on migration as a theoretical lens. A feminist perspective allows for the opportunity to view these women not as victims but rather as agents in the migratory process. The Burundian and Congolese refugees felt an overwhelming sense of disconnection with their families left behind in the countries of origin, compared to the Zimbabwean refugees. Juxtaposed with feelings of loss, was a sense of responsibility to family members left behind. For the Zimbabwean refugees, the close proximity of South Africa to Zimbabwe reflected a different migratory experience compared to the Congolese and Burundian refugees. In their attempt to make sense of their life worlds, themes relating to family well-being and resilience and the role of children were explored.

Dutch Crossing: Journal of Low Countries Studies, 2016

JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY AND SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY, 2015