Unruly Modernity: Reconciling Modernity and Decolonisation in Migration Theory

Abstract

This paper uses unruly modernity as a way of reconciling modernity and decolonisation in migration theory. Migration theory has adopted aspirations and capability as two underpinning concepts for explaining migration. Drawing on empirical research these aspirations and capabilities are usually set within modernity and describe modernity as a driver, condition and/or result of migration. At the same time, another group of migration researchers aims to divest migration thinking from the shackles of modernity, pointing to the different entanglements of coloniality and migration, in terms of migration processes, the topics studied and the peopling of migration research. I call this the coloniality of migration, coloniality in migration and coloniality and migration respectively. These researchers argue for stepping away from modernity/coloniality, to decolonise migration research. Given the centrality of modernity to migration processes and theorisation, how do we decolonise migration theory? This paper deploys unruly modernity as a way of bringing these two perspectives together. Unruly suggests that as modernity and migration are linked, we should explore the inherent plurality of modernity through counter‐hegemonic, alternative and hybrid modernities to decolonise migration theory. Unruly also points to the disruptive ways in which modernity may be lived. It thus offers us the opportunity to disorder the coloniality‐modernity argument to reorder migration theory. The paper outlines how unruly modernities can be operationalised through reflexivity, arguing that one implication of unruliness is that we must analyse reflexivity as a tool among those whom we research and not only that of researchers