The perils of belonging : autochthony, citizenship, and exclusion in Africa and Europe / Peter Geschiere.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Geschiere, Peter

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Group identity--Cameroon.

Group identity.

Group identity--Netherlands.

Ethnicity--Cameroon.

Ethnicity.

Ethnicity--Netherlands.

Cosmopolitanism--Cameroon.

Cosmopolitanism.

Cosmopolitanism--Netherlands.

Netherlands.

Cameroon.

Physical Description:

xi, 283 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 2009.

Summary:

Despite being told that we live in a rapidly globalizing world, more and more people have begun to assert their identities in ways that are deeply rooted in the local. These claims of autochthony-"born from the soil"-seek to establish an irrefutable, primordial right to belong and are often employed in political attempts to exclude outsiders. In The Perils of Belonging, Peter Geschiere traces the concept of autochthony back to classical Athens and incisively explores the ambiguities of this ostensibly self-evident notion in two contemporary contexts: Africa, particularly Cameroon, and Europe, notably the Netherlands.

In all of the situations Geschiere examines, the momentous changes following the end of the cold war fostered anxiety over migration. In Cameroon, the question of who belongs where is raised to exclude "strangers," mostly fellow Cameroonians, from full citizenship, while the Dutch invoke autochthony in fierce debates over the failing integration of immigrants. This fascinating comparative perspective allows Geschiere to examine the dubious historical basis of autochthony claims, but also, more importantly, their strong emotional appeal in present-day contexts. The power of these claims stems from their supposed naturalness, Geschiere contends, but in practice they are always contested-ultimately leading to an obsession with denouncing traitors within the group and tensions that all too easily lead to violence. Shedding new light on the issues that agitate our times, The Perils of Belonging will be essential for anyone concerned with multiculturalism, national citizenship, and migration.

Contents:

Chapter I Introduction: Autochthony-the Flip Side of Globalization? I

A Primordial yet Global Form of Belonging? 2

Autochthony's Genealogy: Some Elements 6

Autochthony Now: Globalization and the Neoliberal Turn 16

Autochthony and the Tenacity of the Nation-State 21

Historical Construction, Political Manipulation and Emotional Power 26

Approach: From Identity to Subjectivation and Aesthetics 31

Chapter Overview 35

Chapter 2 Cameroon: Autochthony, Democratization, and New Struggles over Citizenship 39

Belonging to a Nonexistent Province 41

Elite Associations and Autochthony: Different Degrees of Citizenship? 43

The "Sea People" Protected by the New Constitution 49

Debates in the Cameroonian Press 53

Autochthony's "Naturalness": The Funeral as a Final Test for Belonging 55

A Tortuous History 57

An Empty Discourse with Segmentary Implications 63

Conclusion 64

Chapter 3 Cameroon: Decentralization and Belonging 66

The East and the New Importance of the Forest 69

The New Forest Law 72

Participation in Practice 74

The Elusive Community 76

The Community as Stakeholder: Belonging and Exclusion 81

Village or Grande Famille? 83

The Halfhearted Belonging of the External Elites 86

Discovering Allogenes at Ever Closer Range 89

Conclusion 94

Chapter 4 African Trajectories 97

Ivory Coast: Identification and Exclusion 98

Elsewhere in Africa 117

"Pygmy" Predicaments: Can Only Citizens Qualify as Autochthons? 124

Chapter 5 Autochthony in Europe: The Dutch Turn 130

The Dutch Switch: From Multiculturalism to Cultural Integration 134

Overview: How the Netherlands Became an "Immigration Country" 137

National Consensus and Its History-the Dutch Way 139

Alternative Solutions 142

A More Forceful Integration 144

Allochtonen: A New Term on the Dutch Scene 147

Elusive Autochthony 153

History and Culture 155

Comparisons 162

Chapter 6 Cameroon: Nation-Building and Autochthony as Processes of Subjectivation 169

Nation-Building as an Everyday Reality 172

Rituals of Belonging: The Funeral at Home as a Celebration of Autochthony 190

Chapter 7 Epilogue: Can the Land Lie? Autochthony's Uncertainties in Africa and Europe 212

Varying Patterns of Nation-Building in Africa and Their Implications 213

Autochthony and the Search for Ritual in Europe 218.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [263]-278) and index.

ISBN:

9780226289649

9780226289656

0226289648

0226289656

OCLC:

237018278