Citizenship Democracy And Belonging In Suburban Britain

Citizenship, Democracy and Belonging in Suburban Britain follows a group of community activists in suburban London, as they take on the responsibilities and pressures of being good citizens.

A study of the conditions of being a citizen, belonging and democracy in suburban Britain, this book focuses on understanding how a community takes on the social responsibility and pressures of being a good citizen through what they call ‘stupid’ events, festivals and parades. Building a community is perceived to be an important and necessary act to enable resilience against the perceived threats of neoliberal socio-economic life such as isolation, selfishness and loss of community. Citizenship, Democracy and Belonging in Suburban Britain explores how authoritative knowledge is developed, maintained and deployed by this group as they encounter other ‘social projects’, such as the local council planning committee or academic projects researching participation in urban planning. The activists, who call themselves the ‘Seething Villagers’, model their community activity on the mythical ancient village of Seething where moral tales of how to work together, love others and be a community are laid out in the Seething Tales. These tales include Seething ‘facts’ such as the fact that the ancient Mountain of Seething was destroyed by a giant. The assertion of fact is central to the mechanisms of play and the refusal of expertise at the heart of the Seething community. The book also stands as a reflexive critique on anthropological practice, as the author examines their role in mobilising knowledge and speaking on behalf of others. Citizenship, Democracy and Belonging in Suburban Britain is of interest to anthropologists, urban studies scholars, geographers and those interested in the notions of democracy, inclusion, citizenship and anthropological practice.

What does it take to become a citizen of a particular nation? Is it justified to restrict membership of a society, and if so, on what grounds? This book explores a series of pressing, controversial issues surrounding the acquisition of citizenship, in theory and practice.

First Published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

James Hampshire explores the politics of immigration in postwar Britain and shows how ideas of race, demography and belonging intertwined to shape immigration policy. It is the first book to explain immigration in terms of the politics of demographic governance - how states manage and regulate their populations - and provides a much needed historical context to current debates. In addition, the book develops new perspectives on the ways in which racialized ideas influenced politics and policy-making.

Bringing together a wide range of original empirical research from locations and interconnected geographical contexts from Europe, Australasia, Asia, Africa, Central and Latin America, this book sets out a different agenda for mobility - one which emphasizes the enduring connectedness between, and embeddedness within, places during and after the experience of mobility. These issues are examined through the themes of home and family, neighbourhoods and city spaces and allow the reader to engage with migrants' diverse practices which are specifically local, yet spatially global. This book breaks new ground by arguing for a spatial understanding of translocality that situates the migrant experience within/across particular 'locales' without confining it to the territorial boundedness of the nation state. It will be of interest to academics and students of social and cultural geography, anthropology and transnational studies.

Citizenship is now widely discussed by the media, politicians and academics. This book presents the first comprehensive survey of citizenship in Britain. As well as presenting original data, the authors provide a sophisticated discussion of the concept of citizenship, and the consequences of a lack of civic engagement for democracy.

Publisher Description