Performing Transnational Citizenship and Projecting Counter-Knowledge for Decolonization



Author Information

Hiroko Hara, Prefectural University of Kumamoto, Japan

Abstract

Since the migratory movement of people has increased due to various disasters, both natural and man-made, it is increasingly important to pay attention to the complex identity (trans)formation of transnational citizens, which is not simply classified according to their nationality, birthplace, race, and ethnicity (Yuval-Davis et al., 2005). What stories are told by immigrants as transnational citizens whose identities are continuously shifting between the West/destination and the non-West/origin? This paper is based on interviews and participant observation conducted in Ottawa, Canada and elaborates on her/his-stories of those living in the Cambodian diaspora. What becomes clear from a discussion on their daily practices is how Cambodian residents in Canada negotiate their identities and perform their transnational citizenship; they are transnational citizens constantly transgressing national, cultural, and language borders. Applying the concept of “subaltern counterpublics” proposed by Fraser (1992), I suggest that such counterpublics form a new space that allows its inhabitants to go beyond the dichotomy of the West/destination and the non-West/origin. This study contributes to destabilizing the normative discourse sustaining essentialization and dichotomization and hindering diversity and inclusion.


Paper Information

Conference: ACSS2024
Stream: Immigration

This paper is part of the ACSS2024 Conference Proceedings (View)
Full Paper
View / Download the full paper in a new tab/window


To cite this article:
Hara H. (2024) Performing Transnational Citizenship and Projecting Counter-Knowledge for Decolonization ISSN: 2186-2303 – The Asian Conference on the Social Sciences 2024: Official Conference Proceedings (pp. 559-569) https://doi.org/10.22492/issn.2186-2303.2024.48
To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.22492/issn.2186-2303.2024.48


Comments & Feedback

Place a comment using your LinkedIn profile

Comments

Share on activity feed

Powered by WP LinkPress

Share this Research

Posted by James Alexander Gordon