Making political citizens? Migrants’ narratives of naturalization in the United Kingdom

Citizenship tests are arguably intended as moments of hailing, or interpellation, through which norms are internalized and citizen-subjects produced. We analyse the multiple political subjects revealed through migrants' narratives of the citizenship test process, drawing on 158 interviews with...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Citizenship studies 2018-04, Vol.22 (3), p.225-242
Main Authors: Bassel, Leah, Monforte, Pierre, Khan, Kamran
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Citizens
Citizenship
Differentiation
Inequality
Migrants
Narratives
Naturalization
Negotiation
Neoliberalism
State power
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Summary:Citizenship tests are arguably intended as moments of hailing, or interpellation, through which norms are internalized and citizen-subjects produced. We analyse the multiple political subjects revealed through migrants' narratives of the citizenship test process, drawing on 158 interviews with migrants in Leicester and London who are at different stages in the UK citizenship test process. In dialogue with three counter-figures in the critical naturalization literature - the 'neoliberal citizen'; the 'anxious citizen'; and the 'heroic citizen' - we propose the figure of the 'citizen-negotiator', a socially situated actor who attempts to assert control over their life as they navigate the test process and state power. Through the focus on negotiation, we see migrants navigating a process of differentiation founded on pre-existing inequalities rather than a journey toward transformation.
ISSN:1362-1025
1469-3593
DOI:10.1080/13621025.2018.1449808