Remaking Citizenship in Multicultural Europe: women's movements, gender and diversity (original) (raw)

Developments in the Theory and Practice of Citizenship

2012

The institution of citizenship has traditionally been understood as equal membership of a political community. Developments in the Theory and Practice of Citizenship comes at a time when this is undergoing a period of intense scrutiny. Academics have questioned the extent to which we can refer to unified, homogeneous national citizenries in a world characterised by globalisation, international migration, socio-cultural pluralism and regional devolution, whilst on the other hand in political practice we find the declared Death of Multiculturalism, policy-makers urging for active, responsible citizens, and members of social movements calling for a more equitative, equal and participatory democracy. Citizenship is being reassessed and redefined both from above and from below in politics and society. The contributions to this volume engage in analysis of the processes which are bringing about an evolution of our understanding of citizenship and the individual s relationship to the state, the polity and globalisation. Through empirical case studies, they highlight how in practice the terms of membership of a citizenry are negotiated in society through laws, political discourse, cultural associations, participatory processes, rituals and ceremonies. In doing so, these contributions offer an illustration of the diversity of venues and processes of citizenship and illustrate the benefits of an understanding of citizenship as a social practice. The book thus provides an opportunity to pose theoretical, practical and moral questions relating to these issues, as well as offering avenues for further research in the future.

Conceptualising citizenship: past, present and future directions in the Citizenship debates

This article takes a critical look at equality and the masked instances of exclusion throughout citizenship theorising. One way this is done is to examine the spaces for democratic citizenship and how citizens are supposed to engage in this space; the goal of a common good allows for the deconstruction of abstract conceptions. This analysis highlights the gendering of spaces and practices, structural inequalities marginalising citizens, and concerns arising from a universal idea of citizenship values. The status of citizen is assigned to those able to measure up as a ‘good’ or ‘active’ citizen, and consequently the rights received reflect the duties performed. However this conception is modelled off a very small percentage of the population and does not deal with structural barriers limiting an individual’s agency to actively participate. In our increasingly globalised world, citizenship theorising needs to broaden its horizons and embrace fluid and diverse identities, but this introduces questions of maintaining a shared citizen sentiment. Future discussions will need to tackle issues of diversity and inequality, as well as continuing to build on T.H. Marshall’s social, political, and civil rights, as these are increasingly not enough for all citizens; their implementation and definition need to be expanded.

'Citizenship is not a word I use': How Women's Movement Activists Understand Citizenship

In: Beatrice Halsaa, Sasha Roseneil and Sevil Sumer, eds., Remaking Citizenship in Multicultural Europe: Women's Movements, Gender and Diversity. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

This chapter addresses the overall topic of this volume, of whether women’s movement claims can be understood as claims to remake citizenship in multicultural Europe, by asking the following questions: How is the term citizenship understood by contemporary women’s movement activists? What reflections and experiences do such activists impart in relation to lived citizenship? Is citizenship a concept used by movement activists – does the term have political relevance for women’s movement claims? According to Lister et al. (2007: 168), there is ‘remarkably little empirical analysis of lived citizenship in comparison with the volume of theorising about citizenship in individual member states of the European Union, never mind cross-nationally. This is particularly the case with regard to citizens’ own understanding of citizenship’s meaning’ (Lister et al., 2007: 168; see also Kaber, 2005: 1). Our study of women’s movement activists and citizenship in Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom (UK) seeks to fill some of this empirical gap in current scholarship, whilst also contributing to theoretical debates about citizenship as a concept. Moreover, we address the issue of whether the broad understanding of citizenship promoted by feminist scholars has a potential to become increasingly relevant and useful for women’s movements across different national and political contexts.