The Emergence of the Enterprising Refugee Discourse and Differential Inclusion in Turkey's Changing Migration Politics (original) (raw)

Tracing the reactions to the high numbers of enterprises established by Syrian refugees in Turkey, this paper claims that there is an emerging discourse of (differential) inclusion, which does not depict Syrian refugees as victims and guests, but rather as enterprising subjectivities. In order to do this, it first introduces a critical theoretical discussion on the ambivalent figure of the migrant entrepreneur. Adapting the approach of autonomy of migration, the emerging discourse on the enterprising refugee is discussed in relation to historical references to the experiences and struggles of former migrants and their recu-peration in a neoliberal framework. This paper then presents the initial forms of inclusion of this figure into information and expert systems. Finally, it argues that recent changes in migration politics with a focus on the ›economic potential‹ is institutionalizing this form of differential inclusion.