A Citizenship Without Borders? Engagement of Descendants of Immigrants Conference-Debate
While the younger generation is often described in a pessimistic light as being disillusioned, disengaged, apolitical and individualist, paradoxically, the issue of youth engagement has never been as present as it is today in the public debate. The amount of research conducted on the topic has also multiplied over the past few years. However, a closer look reveals that very few studies have focused more precisely on engagement practices that target young people with immigrant backgrounds.
Immigration, integration, citizenship, identities… These terms are omnipresent in the public space and media scene. When these notions come across with the issue of youth engagement, this often results in a logic that opposes “engagement over there” against “integration over here”. In other words, engagement beyond national borders would automatically lead to a deficit of integration in the country of residence.
Recent studies point out the importance of moving beyond this bipolar debate in order to shed light on the accumulation of identities of young people with immigration backgrounds and multiple forms of belonging between countries of origin and countries of residence.
An engagement mechanism of descendants of immigrants lies at the intersection between events that occur in their countries of origin and/or their countries of residence, and events that occur in a family or intimate setting. Far from excluding one another, multiple cultural identities add to each other and reinforce each other so as to build a citizenship that are more characterized by transnational engagement and are likely to favor a stronger community involvement at a local level.
Speakers:
Lila Belkacem, Associate Professor, Paris-Est Créteil Val-de-Marne University (UPEC), ESPE de Créteil, LIRTES, OUIEP
Laurent Lardeux, Study and Research Director, National Institute of Youth and Popular Education (INJEP)
Rafaël Ricardou, Project Coordinator, Research and Action Group for Rural Development (Groupe de recherches et de réalisations pour le développement rural, GRDR)
Mirna Safi, Research Director, Sciences Po
Catherine Wihtol de Wenden, Emeritus Director of Research, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)
Christophe Bertossi, Director of the Centre for Migration and Citizenship, IFRI
In partnership with the National Institute of Youth and Popular Education (INJEP)
For more information on the debate, please contact: conference@injep.fr / 01 70 98 94 39
Citizenship is a major issue in public debates when it comes to immigration in France. Passionate talks illustrate the current disagreements on the meaning of value such as “laïcité”, “universalism”, “equality”, “community” and on the way these should apply in social and political...
