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Abstract
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Introduction
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Geography
Political Geography

Politics of citizenship: Towards an analytical framework

Profile image of Kristian StokkeKristian Stokke

Stokke, K. (2017). Politics of Citizenship: Towards an Analytical Framework. Norwegian Journal of Geography 71(4): 193-207.

https://doi.org/10.1080/00291951.2017.1369454
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Abstract

In the theory-oriented article, the author discusses the meaning of politics of citizenship. He argues that a broad conception of citizenship may provide an integral framework for studying political contentions over cultural, legal, social and political exclusion and inclusion. He starts out from an identification of four key dimensions of citizenship and defines politics of citizenship as contentious interactions over the institutionalisation and realisation of substantive membership, legal status, rights and participation. This is followed by a review of cultural and global turns within the liberal nation-state model of citizenship, demonstrating that the form and substance of citizenship reflect contextual power relations and political contentions. Following from this observation, he discusses the issues at stake in citizenship politics, with special attention to three interrelated dimensions: politics of recognition for cultural inclusion, politics of redistribution for social justice, and politics of representation for political inclusion. This discussion points to fundamental tensions and strategic dilemmas, but also to points of convergence around affirmative and transformative remedies for injustice.

Figures (3)
Fig. 1. Dimensions and stratification of citizenship
Fig. 1. Dimensions and stratification of citizenship
Fig. 2. Multiple and relational scales and territories of citizenship
Fig. 2. Multiple and relational scales and territories of citizenship
Table 1. Forms of injustice and politics of justice (based on Fraser & Olson 2008; Fraser 2009)
Table 1. Forms of injustice and politics of justice (based on Fraser & Olson 2008; Fraser 2009)

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    Elin Sæther

    China Information

    Scholarship on Chinese civil society has produced rich empirical studies, but there have been few attempts to theorize the empirical knowledge acquired. Moreover, the question of how to conceptualize the political agency of civil society in a non-democratic context has received limited systematic attention. In this conceptual article, we draw on a discursive approach to politics to analyse the political agency of Chinese civil society. Our analysis is based on synthesizing insights gained through three separate research projects. We propose a conceptual framework which focuses on how civil society actors position themselves within a structured political space, how they represent social groups and issues through advocacy, how they care for these groups, and how they engage in processes of identity formation. Taken together, these four modalities constitute a framework for analysing the different political dimensions of civil society agency.

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    Young people’s experiences and meaning-making at a multicultural festival in Norway
    Elin Sæther

    Journal of Peace Education

    This article explores young people's experiences and meaning-making at a multicultural festival. Multicultural festivals aim to promote inclusion and challenge problem-oriented discourses in current debates on diversity and migration. Listening to youth voices from such a festival gives a sense of how young participants perceive representations of cultural difference, and how they relate these representations to their own identity and sense of belonging. The participants in our study are 86 young people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds between the ages of 12 and 20. They recorded answers to our questions about what they did at the festival as well as the memories that participation evokes using a specially developed app. Interpreting the broad spectrum of their reflections in the light of theories about intercultural learning and citizenship, we found that the young people were eager to learn about the Other by experiencing cultural differences and engaging with traditions different to their own. In addition, they experienced the festival as an inclusive space, open for transnational identities, and evoking a sense of safety and belonging. We conclude by arguing that the young participants take with them experiences and memories of diversity as the norm rather than the exception.

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    Urban Development in Rio de Janeiro During the ‘Pink Tide’: Bridging Socio-Spatial Divides Between the Formal and Informal City?
    celina Sørbøe

    2018

    This chapter takes the Rocinha favela in Rio de Janeiro as the starting point for reflecting on efforts at addressing social justice and constructing citizenship in Brazil during the ‘Pink Tide’. Recent public interventions have addressed economic inequalities through policies of redistribution. This has led to a degree of social inclusion through lifting people out of poverty and providing them entry into middle-class consumer markets. The interventions have however been less successful in building a foundation for addressing inequalities beyond economic concerns. The PAC programme of infrastructure investments was co-opted by elite interests, while the UPP police programme failed to improve security. Advancements that did take place have been countered by a revanchist reaction to the gains made by the poorer segments of society.

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    What Is a “Good Citizen”? a Systematic Literature Review
    Ernesto Treviño

    IEA Research for Education, 2021

    The concept of "good citizenship" has long been part of discussions in various academic fields. Good citizenship involves multiple components, including values, norms, ethical ideals, behaviors, and expectations of participation. This chapter seeks to discuss the idea of good citizenship by surveying the academic literature on the subject. To map the scientific discussion on the notion of good citizenship, a systematic review of 120 academic articles published between 1950 and 2019 is carried out. The review of the literature shows that good citizenship is broadly defined, incorporating notions from multiple fields, although these are mainly produced in Western countries with comparatively higher income levels. Additionally, although there is no single definition of good citizenship, the academic literature focuses on three components: the normative, active, and personal dimensions. This systematic review informs the estimation of citizenship profiles of Chap. 3 using the IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) 2016. Keywords Citizenship norms • Good citizenship • Systematic review •

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    Islamic Religious Education and Citizenship Education: Their Relationship According to Practitioners of Primary Islamic Religious Education in The Netherlands
    Paul Vermeer

    Religions

    This article discusses how practitioners of Islamic Religious Education (IRE) in Dutch primary schools look at the relationship between IRE and citizenship education (CE). To what extent do they believe it is possible and desirable for IRE to contribute to CE? What would an integration of IRE and CE look like, and where do they see potential tensions between IRE and CE? In two extensive focus group discussions, with identity coordinators and experienced IRE teachers, the relationships between IRE and four citizenship dimensions, namely, identity, legal status, participation, and rights, were discussed. Qualitative content analysis of these discussions reveals that the integration of IRE with CE is desirable and possible, but in varying degrees based on the level of different citizenship dimensions. The extent of integration of IRE and CE also depends on the interpretations of Islamic key concepts. IRE and CE were also found to face similar challenges in seeking to achieve integratio...

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