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Beyond Legal Status: Exploring Dimensions of Belonging among Forced Migrants in Istanbul and Vienna

Author

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  • Susan Beth Rottmann

    (Faculty of Social Sciences, Özyeğin University, Turkey)

  • Ivan Josipovic

    (Institute for Urban and Regional Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria)

  • Ursula Reeger

    (Institute for Urban and Regional Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria)

Abstract

Migrants with precarious legal statuses experience significant structural exclusion from their host nations but may still feel partial belonging. This article explores two dimensions potentially relevant for this group’s sense of belonging: city-level opportunity structures and public political discourses. Specifically, we examine perceptions of belonging among forced migrants with similarly precarious legal statuses located in Istanbul and Vienna. Drawing from semi-structured interviews, we argue that opportunity structures in the cities provide a minimal sense of social normalness within a period of life otherwise considered anomalous or exceptional. Any articulations of belonging in this context however remain inherently tied to the conditions of legal limbo at the national level. With regard to public political discourses, migrants display a strong awareness of the role of religion within national debates on culture and integration. In a context where religion is discussed as a mediator of belonging, we found explicit affirmations of such discourses, whereas in a context where religion is discussed as a marker of difference, we found implicit compliance, despite feelings of alienation. Overall, this article shows the importance of differentiating belonging, and of cross-regional comparisons for highlighting the diverse roles of cities and public political discourses in facilitating integration.

Suggested Citation

  • Susan Beth Rottmann & Ivan Josipovic & Ursula Reeger, 2020. "Beyond Legal Status: Exploring Dimensions of Belonging among Forced Migrants in Istanbul and Vienna," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 8(1), pages 241-251.
    • Handle: RePEc:cog:socinc:v:8:y:2020:i:1:p:241-251
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Astrid Mattes, 2017. "Who We Are Is What We Believe? Religion and Collective Identity in Austrian and German Immigrant Integration Policies," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 5(1), pages 93-104.
    2. Andrew Geddes, 2005. "Europe's Border Relationships and International Migration Relations," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(4), pages 787-806, November.
    3. Harald Bauder & Dayana A. Gonzalez, 2018. "Municipal Responses to ‘Illegality’: Urban Sanctuary across National Contexts," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(1), pages 124-134.
    4. David Schiefer & Jolanda Noll, 2017. "The Essentials of Social Cohesion: A Literature Review," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 132(2), pages 579-603, June.
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