Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in Madrid
Subject to constant and pervasive suspicion, asylum seekers in the global north often must expend great energy to assert their moral agency and be perceived as ‘good’ refugees who are not only worthy of being granted asylum but also capable of becoming ‘good’ citizens in the future. Navigating these...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Edinburgh Library
2023-04-01
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| Series: | Medicine Anthropology Theory |
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| Online Access: | http://www.medanthrotheory.org/article/view/6870 |
| _version_ | 1797838333913595904 |
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| author | Jacqueline Marie Wagner |
| author_facet | Jacqueline Marie Wagner |
| author_sort | Jacqueline Marie Wagner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Subject to constant and pervasive suspicion, asylum seekers in the global north often must expend great energy to assert their moral agency and be perceived as ‘good’ refugees who are not only worthy of being granted asylum but also capable of becoming ‘good’ citizens in the future. Navigating these difficult waters requires a keen awareness of what makes an individual ‘deserving’ of asylum in the local context as well as a distinct ability to balance different modes of presentation as required. Specifically, asylum seekers must be vulnerable enough to meet the requirements of refugee status, and yet also capable enough not to be perceived as a burden on society. In this Field Notes piece, I examine these negotiations within an international NGO that operates an official refugee and asylum seeker reception site in Madrid, Spain. Drawing upon ethnographic research conducted at this site, I argue that asylum seekers assert moral agency by demonstrating that they are ‘deserving’ of asylum within the local moral economy of deservingness. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T15:40:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c69021c026ac4784af7b1665587546e3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2405-691X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T15:40:13Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | University of Edinburgh Library |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Medicine Anthropology Theory |
| spelling | doaj.art-c69021c026ac4784af7b1665587546e32023-04-27T12:52:55ZengUniversity of Edinburgh LibraryMedicine Anthropology Theory2405-691X2023-04-0110111010.17157/mat.10.1.68706870Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in MadridJacqueline Marie Wagner0Washington University in St. LouisSubject to constant and pervasive suspicion, asylum seekers in the global north often must expend great energy to assert their moral agency and be perceived as ‘good’ refugees who are not only worthy of being granted asylum but also capable of becoming ‘good’ citizens in the future. Navigating these difficult waters requires a keen awareness of what makes an individual ‘deserving’ of asylum in the local context as well as a distinct ability to balance different modes of presentation as required. Specifically, asylum seekers must be vulnerable enough to meet the requirements of refugee status, and yet also capable enough not to be perceived as a burden on society. In this Field Notes piece, I examine these negotiations within an international NGO that operates an official refugee and asylum seeker reception site in Madrid, Spain. Drawing upon ethnographic research conducted at this site, I argue that asylum seekers assert moral agency by demonstrating that they are ‘deserving’ of asylum within the local moral economy of deservingness.http://www.medanthrotheory.org/article/view/6870migrationrefugeesasylumspain |
| spellingShingle | Jacqueline Marie Wagner Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in Madrid Medicine Anthropology Theory migration refugees asylum spain |
| title | Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in Madrid |
| title_full | Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in Madrid |
| title_fullStr | Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in Madrid |
| title_full_unstemmed | Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in Madrid |
| title_short | Deserving Asylum and Becoming ‘Good’ Refugees in Madrid |
| title_sort | deserving asylum and becoming good refugees in madrid |
| topic | migration refugees asylum spain |
| url | http://www.medanthrotheory.org/article/view/6870 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jacquelinemariewagner deservingasylumandbecominggoodrefugeesinmadrid |