Figurations of displacement in southern Europe: empirical findings and reflections on protracted displacement and translocal networks of forced migrants in Greece and Italy

This working paper is based on empirical research on the Translocal Figurations of Displacement in Greece and Italy. The authors aim to compare protracted displacement in Greece and Italy, looking at the structural forces shaping it and their interactions with migrants' mobility and connectivity. This comparison is based on the analysis of the relations between two contextual variables (governance regimes and host population) and three key variables (mobility, connectivity and marginalisation). In this paper, they present findings from three study sites in Greece and four research locations in Italy. Findings show that protracted legal and socio-economic marginalisation is a key feature characterising the lives of displaced people in southern European countries. It confirms the hypothesis that protracted displacement does not end when forced migrants reach Greece or Italy. Restrictive governance regimes at the national and EU level severely limit mobility opportunities within Greece and Italy and across the European Union (EU). To cope with and resist marginalising and immobilising policies, displaced migrants in Italy and Greece put in place several strategies, ranging from adapting to governance regimes and taking the most out of them to resisting them and finding ways to avoid, bypass or overcome such regimes. In this framework, mobility and connectivity emerge as a resource and a trap for displaced migrants in southern Europe. On the one hand, migrants' strategies of intra-national and intra-EU mobility may help them out of protracted displacement, while on the other, certain types of mobility (hyper-, circular, paradoxical) can entrap, rather than free them. Similarly, local, translocal and transnational networks emerge as a crucial resource for displaced people in Greece and Italy. At the same time, family and co-ethnic networks may also be experienced as disabling, hampering one's aspirations to get out of protracted displacement. Fieldwork in both countries highlighted common factors shaping the relationships between displaced migrants and host communities. We also observed different facets of intergroup relations, ranging from indifference to friendship. The paper concludes by highlighting similarities and differences on the findings from both countries, based on qualitative and quantitative data

Nothing is more permanent than the temporary: understanding protracted displacement and people's own responses

Across the world, 16 million refugees and an unknown number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) experience long-lasting conditions of economic precarity, marginalisation, rightlessness and future uncertainty. They live under conditions of protracted displacement. Policy solutions often fail to recognise displaced people’s needs and limit rather than widen the range of available solutions. This report brings together the central findings of the TRAFIG project’s empirical study in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Tanzania, Jordan, Pakistan, Greece, Italy and Germany. We engaged with more than 3,120 people in our three-year project. Our analysis centres around five factors that shape conditions of protracted displacement: 1) governance regimes of aid and asylum, 2) social practices and livelihoods, 3) networks and movements, 4) intergroup relations between displaced people and hosts, and 5) development incentives and economic interactions. We present multiple findings on each of these themes. Moreover, this report addresses gender and classbased differences and mental health related challenges in constellations of protracted displacement as well as political dynamics that impact on people’s own responses to protracted displacement. Overall, our research shows that refugees, IDPs and other migrants by and large find protection, shelter, livelihood support, a sense of belonging and opportunities to migrate elsewhere through their personal networks. These networks often stretch across several places or even extend across multiple countries. While they are not a panacea for all challenges, people’s own connections are an essential resource for sustainable and long-term solutions to their precarious situation. They must not be ignored in policy responses to protracted displacement. Understanding the needs and the local, translocal and transnational ties of displaced people is the foundation for finding solutions that last

Love, gendered identities and power relationships: examining migrants' transnational lives

The present thesis drawing on an ethnographic research conducted in Volos examines the erotic experiences of Albanian and Bulgarian men and women, who came to Greece as migrants. Migration studies have tended to focus on the economic aspects of migration phenomena (costs, benefits and working lives of migrants) and failed to recognize the role of emotions, feelings and affect in the motivation and experience of migration. From this perspective, this ethnography approaches and investigates an underresearched dimension of migratory experience within a theoretical framework that seeks to further our understanding of emotions. Following contemporary anthropological work on emotions, this thesis examines the complex relation between power, subjectivity and emotion. Each chapter, which focuses on different aspects of migrants’ erotic lives, discusses how migrants attempt to subvert the established power relations in the host country and reconstitute their gendered and ethnic identity through performances of love. More specifically, this study examines migrants’ narratives about desirable partners, various kinds of care performances, traumatic experiences of love, loneliness, “virtual” loves and the consumption of new transnational matchmaking services (dating sites) and of new technologies of communication (facebook, sms). The analysis of migrants’ multiple interweaving emotional experiences provides a glimpse onto the complex interconnections between love and political economy of the home country as well as of the host country, working experiences, migration legislation, gender norms. Based on the analysis of the ethnographic data, I argue that in this context of multiple emotional experiences migrants realize the gendered, sexual, ethnic, racial and emotional norms that define specific bodies as loveable and exercise their agency and attempt to redefine their status in the host country through their renegotiations and reinterpretations of love converting love into a site of empowerment and contestation of the established power relations.Φέρνοντας στο προσκήνιο τα συναισθήματα των μεταναστών και των μεταναστριών, τα οποία συνήθως αποσιωπούνται στον δημόσιο λόγο, αλλά και στην έρευνα της μετανάστευσης, η παρούσα διδακτορική διατριβή επιχειρεί μια εναλλακτική θεωρητική και αναλυτική προσέγγιση της μεταναστευτικής εμπειρίας. Μέσω της ανάλυσης των ερωτικών βιωμάτων των μεταναστών και των μεταναστριών που προέρχονται από τις πρώην σοσιαλιστικές χώρες της Αλβανίας και Βουλγαρίας και ζουν σε μια επαρχιακή πόλη της Ελλάδας, στον Βόλο, εξετάζεται πώς στο συγκεκριμένο πολιτικό και κοινωνικό συγκείμενο, στο πλαίσιο σύνθετων δια-εθνικών συναισθηματικών επαφών τα κοινωνικά υποκείμενα βιώνουν μέσω του ερωτικού συναισθήματος την πολιτική τους θέση στην χώρα υποδοχής αλλά και επιχειρούν ανασυγκροτώντας την έμφυλη και ταξική τους ταυτότητα να αναδιατάξουν τους όρους του πολιτικού. Ως εκ τούτου, η παρούσα μελέτη -ακολουθώντας τις σύγχρονες θεωρητικές αναλύσεις περί συναισθημάτων- επιχειρεί και προσφέρει μια πολιτική ανάγνωση του ερωτικού συναισθήματος θέτοντας στο επίκεντρο του προβληματισμού τη συνάρθρωση του συναισθήματος, της εξουσίας και της υποκειμενικότητας. Στο πλαίσιο αυτό, η συγκεκριμένη εθνογραφική έρευνα εξετάζει τις πολιτικές, οικονομικές, κοινωνικές και πολιτισμικές συνθήκες που διαμορφώνουν τα ερωτικά βιώματα των μεταναστών/τριών και προσφέρει τη δυνατότητα ανάγνωσης των πολυεπίπεδων σχέσεων εξουσίας (φύλου, φυλής, τάξης, έθνους) που διέπουν τις οικείες σχέσεις αποδομώντας τον ιδιωτικό, ρομαντικό, οικουμενικό και «φυσικό» χαρακτήρα του έρωτα. Πιο συγκεκριμένα, τίθενται υπό εξέταση οι «κατάλληλοι» τόποι εύρεσης ερωτικού συντρόφου, οι καθημερινές επιτελέσεις της φροντίδας, οι τραυματικές ερωτικές εμπειρίες, η μοναξιά, οι φιγούρες στα φλιτζάνια του καφέ και οι απόπειρες ίασης του ερωτικού πόνου, τα ερωτικά ηχοτοπία και η κατανάλωση νέων κανονιστικών προτύπων σχεσιακότητας (dating sites, αγγελίες εύρεσης ερωτικού συντρόφου στον έντυπο τύπο, facebook). Καθώς ακολουθούμε τους/τις μετανάστες/τριές στις καθημερινές δια-εθνικές – νοερές και μη- διαδρομές τους, παρακολουθούμε πώς τα υποκείμενα βιώνουν τον έρωτα μέσω συναισθηματικών επαφών, που μορφοποιούνται και οριοθετούνται με γνώμονα τα συναισθήματα του φόβου, της φροντίδας, της οδύνης, της επισφάλειας. Η ανάλυση αυτών των πολλαπλών και αλληλοδιαπλεκόμενων συναισθηματικών εμπειριών αναδεικνύει τη διαπλοκή του ερωτικού συναισθήματος με την πολιτική οικονομία της χώρας αποστολής και υποδοχής, την εργασιακή απασχόληση, τη μεταναστευτική νομοθεσία, τις έμφυλες νόρμες, τις εμπειρίες ετεροποίησης και την πολιτική θέση που κατέχουν οι μετανάστες/τριές στην χώρα υποδοχής. Υποστηρίζω πως στο πλαίσιο αυτών ακριβώς των σύνθετων συναισθηματικών επαφών οι μετανάστες/τριες αντιλαμβάνονται ποιες είναι οι έμφυλες, σεξουαλικές, εθνικές, ταξικές, αλλά και συναισθηματικές προϋποθέσεις που ορίζουν ποια σώματα αναγνωρίζονται ως σώματα άξια να αγαπηθούν και ποια όχι -στο πλαίσιο των δυτικών βιοπολιτικών Λόγων του έρωτα- και επιχειρούν να υπονομεύσουν τις εδραιωμένες σχέσεις εξουσίας οικειοποιώντας ανατρεπτικά τη νόρμα του έρωτα, διεκδικώντας την ανασημασιοδότηση της μεταναστευτικής, εθνικής και έμφυλης υποκειμενικότητάς τους και την αναδιαπραγμάτευση των όρων αναγνωρισιμότητας τους

On not staying put where they have put you: mobilities disrupting the socio-spatial figurations of displacement in Greece

International audienceThe reception and protection system in Greece in the aftermath of the so-called refugee crisis produces a geography of specific mobility restrictions and accommodation types for migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees. These restrictions create a multilayered landscape of displacement, dominated by three sociospatial figurations: the forced containment of displaced people in 'hotspots' on eastern Aegean islands; staying in isolated and segregated camps in the mainland; and the accommodation of the most vulnerable in urban centres. At the same time, the mobility practices of displaced people often disrupt the above figurations, stemming from their survival practices and life aspirations, and largely relating to their translocal social connections. These mobilities include, but are not limited to, unregistered movements from hotspots to the mainland, mobilities from camp to camp, mobility negotiations between camp and city. This paper explores the figurations of displacement related to the impact of governance regimes on the livelihoods and mobility of displaced people in Greece. Within this frame, it focuses on the ways through which migrants and asylum-seekers negotiate, resist or transcend the geography of multiple restrictions, through translocal mobility practices that intervene and therefore reshape dominant socio-spatial figurations

Inhabiting the permanently temporary: practices of space appropriation and mobility negotiations in "hospitality structures"

International audienc

Gendered Aspects of Migration from Southeast Europe

The research aimed to study migration as a gendered experience through the narratives of the lives of immigrants and immigrants from Albania and Bulgaria. In the last two decades, the geopolitical space of South-Eastern Europe has been redefined in the light of the political developments of the post-communist period and the thickening of a series of political, economic and cultural exchanges. Increased cross-border mobility and the emergence of new social relations as well as forms of political subjectivity and communication play a leading role in this process.The research was based on 60 in-depth interviews with men and women of three age groups from Albania and Bulgaria, as well as ethnographic observations in the country of origin and host country and on visual material. Interview material was analyzed through an interdisciplinary perspective that explores the narrative strategies of immigrants and focuses in particular on three aspects of their lived experiences: integration, work and intercultural communication. The selection of gender as a key parameter for the analysis of the migration phenomenon was dictated by both social and scientific reasons. The "feminization" of immigration is a social phenomenon of the last two decades that has been highlighted by a growing number of social scientists. Although these immigrants are no longer as "invisible" as they were in the past, the real impact of this "feminization" of migratory flows has not been studied in depth. In our effort to fill this research gap, we have sought to broaden our perspective beyond a 'add women' and 'mix' (addwomenandstir) approach.Analyzing the ways in which men and women relate their lived experiences before and after migration, we aimed to better understand gender as an active social process. In particular, we sought to understand how the migration process restructured gender relations both within the immigrant communities and in relation to the host society. From this perspective we have also studied the role of migration in constructing new, often hybrid, but always gendered subjectivities

Figurations of Displacement in Southern Europe - Empirical findings and reflections on protracted displacement and translocal networks of forced migrants in Greece and Italy

This working paper is based on empirical research on the Translocal Figurations of Displacement in Greece and Italy. The authors aim to compare protracted displacement in Greece and Italy, looking at the structural forces shaping it and their interactions with migrants' mobility and connectivity. This comparison is based on the analysis of the relations between two contextual variables (governance regimes and host population) and three key variables (mobility, connectivity and marginalisation). In this paper, they present findings from three study sites in Greece and four research locations in Italy. Findings show that protracted legal and socio-economic marginalisation is a key feature characterising the lives of displaced people in southern European countries. It confirms the hypothesis that protracted displacement does not end when forced migrants reach Greece or Italy. Restrictive governance regimes at the national and EU level severely limit mobility opportunities within Greece and Italy and across the European Union (EU). To cope with and resist marginalising and immobilising policies, displaced migrants in Italy and Greece put in place several strategies, ranging from adapting to governance regimes and taking the most out of them to resisting them and finding ways to avoid, bypass or overcome such regimes. In this framework, mobility and connectivity emerge as a resource and a trap for displaced migrants in southern Europe. On the one hand, migrants' strategies of intra-national and intra-EU mobility may help them out of protracted displacement, while on the other, certain types of mobility (hyper-, circular, paradoxical) can entrap, rather than free them. Similarly, local, translocal and transnational networks emerge as a crucial resource for displaced people in Greece and Italy. At the same time, family and co-ethnic networks may also be experienced as disabling, hampering one's aspirations to get out of protracted displacement. Fieldwork in both countries highlighted common factors shaping the relationships between displaced migrants and host communities. We also observed different facets of intergroup relations, ranging from indifference to friendship. The paper concludes by highlighting similarities and differences on the findings from both countries, based on qualitative and quantitative data

Nothing is more permanent than the temporary: Understanding protracted displacement and people's own responses TRAFIG Synthesis Report

Across the world, 16 million refugees and an unknown number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) experience long-lasting conditions of economic precarity, marginalisation, rightlessness and future uncertainty. They live under conditions of protracted displacement. Policy solutions often fail to recognise displaced people’s needs and limit rather than widen the range of available solutions. This report brings together the central findings of the TRAFIG project’s empirical study in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Tanzania, Jordan,Pakistan, Greece, Italy and Germany. We engaged with more than 3,120 people in our three-year project. Our analysis centres around five factors that shape conditions of protracted displacement: 1) governance regimes of aid and asylum, 2) social practices and livelihoods, 3) networks and movements, 4) intergroup relations between displaced people and hosts, and 5) development incentives and economic interactions.We present multiple findings on each of these themes. Moreover, this report addresses gender and classbased differences and mental health related challenges in constellations of protracted displacement as well as political dynamics that impact on people’s own responses to protracted displacement. Overall, our research shows that refugees, IDPs and other migrants by and large find protection, shelter, livelihood support, a sense of belonging and opportunities to migrate elsewhere through their personal networks. These networks often stretch across severalplaces or even extend across multiple countries. While they are not a panacea for all challenges, people’s own connections are an essential resource for sustainable and long-term solutions to their precarious situation. They must not be ignored in policy responses to protracted displacement. Understanding the needs and the local, translocal and transnational ties of displaced people is the foundation for finding solutions that last