Public Seminar Series, Hilary term 2019
Series convener: Dr Naohiko Omata
Seminar held on 16 January 2019
About the seminar
This seminar will explore the role and significance of different types of transnational engagement – social, cultural, political and economic – in the lives of second generation from refugee backgrounds. Drawing on in-depth interviews with the British born adult children of refugees from Tamil, Kurdish and Vietnamese backgrounds, it will examine the transnational activities of second generation, the ways in which they differ from their parents and how their refugee histories may have shaped transnational engagement including complex experiences and feelings during return visits. The seminar highlights both the comparative aspects of the three groups and the micro influences of biographies and family relations in shaping the transnational activities among second generation which in turn influence ideas of home and belonging.
About the speaker
Alice Bloch is Professor of Sociology at the University of Manchester. Her research focuses on understanding the lived experiences of forced migrants. Key themes include: marginalisation and exclusion, rights and agency, engagement in transnational relations, social and community networks, economic strategies and labour market experiences and the ways in which experiences intersect with class, gender, ethnicity and power.
Photo: Over 80% of refugees in Jordan live in urban areas, such as Amman - pictured. © UNHCR/Mohammad Hawari