Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in Portugal

Becoming a mother in the context of migration configures itself as a dynamic process of identity constitution that raises questions about citizenship, belonging, and migration policies. Furthermore, it is a process that involves a new set of maternal positions and practices that are composed through...

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Main Author: Júlia Neves
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-01-01
Series:Social Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/2/55
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author Júlia Neves
author_facet Júlia Neves
author_sort Júlia Neves
collection DOAJ
description Becoming a mother in the context of migration configures itself as a dynamic process of identity constitution that raises questions about citizenship, belonging, and migration policies. Furthermore, it is a process that involves a new set of maternal positions and practices that are composed through possibly conflicting cultural values. Based on the occurrence of unplanned pregnancies, this study sought to analyze the dimensions crossed by this event through an intersectional perspective of the narratives of Cape Verdean immigrant women who had children in Portugal, focusing on gender, migration, race/ethnicity. In-depth interviews were conducted with nine women, born in Cape Verde and residing in Greater Lisbon, through the Biographic-Narrative Interpretative Method (BNIM), which enabled an approach to the different dimensions that intersect in life stories of becoming an immigrant mother. Thematic analysis was chosen as an analytical tool, and the framework provided by intersectionality allows us to see the multiple identities that shape the processes of becoming a migrant mother. The results brought to light themes and issues that overlap and make motherhood more complex in the context of migration, highlighting and reinforcing the conditions of inequality.
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spelling doaj.art-bb7e1e5e398d495ca126dd07e9e90fd52023-11-23T22:05:04ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602022-01-011125510.3390/socsci11020055Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in PortugalJúlia Neves0Centro de Investigação e Estudos de Sociologia, ISCTE—Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, Avenida das Forças Armadas, 1649-026 Lisboa, PortugalBecoming a mother in the context of migration configures itself as a dynamic process of identity constitution that raises questions about citizenship, belonging, and migration policies. Furthermore, it is a process that involves a new set of maternal positions and practices that are composed through possibly conflicting cultural values. Based on the occurrence of unplanned pregnancies, this study sought to analyze the dimensions crossed by this event through an intersectional perspective of the narratives of Cape Verdean immigrant women who had children in Portugal, focusing on gender, migration, race/ethnicity. In-depth interviews were conducted with nine women, born in Cape Verde and residing in Greater Lisbon, through the Biographic-Narrative Interpretative Method (BNIM), which enabled an approach to the different dimensions that intersect in life stories of becoming an immigrant mother. Thematic analysis was chosen as an analytical tool, and the framework provided by intersectionality allows us to see the multiple identities that shape the processes of becoming a migrant mother. The results brought to light themes and issues that overlap and make motherhood more complex in the context of migration, highlighting and reinforcing the conditions of inequality.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/2/55migrationbecoming a mothernarrativesintersectionalityBNIM
spellingShingle Júlia Neves
Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in Portugal
Social Sciences
migration
becoming a mother
narratives
intersectionality
BNIM
title Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in Portugal
title_full Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in Portugal
title_fullStr Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in Portugal
title_full_unstemmed Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in Portugal
title_short Becoming a Migrant Mother: An Intersectional Approach to the Narratives of Cape Verdean Women in Portugal
title_sort becoming a migrant mother an intersectional approach to the narratives of cape verdean women in portugal
topic migration
becoming a mother
narratives
intersectionality
BNIM
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/2/55
work_keys_str_mv AT julianeves becomingamigrantmotheranintersectionalapproachtothenarrativesofcapeverdeanwomeninportugal