Contested Childhoods: Growing up in Migrancy

Abstract

In this introductory chapter, we present the central theoretical concepts of the book and discuss them in the light of existing research on childhood/s and migration. We also introduce the chapters to follow, which explore specific migration, governance, and identity processes currently involving children and ideas of childhood. We are especially interested in changing ideas and practices of childhood, and propose the twin concepts of “contested childhoods” and “growing up in migrancy” as tools for the investigation of these specific aspects. We are also interested in how public policies affect concepts of childhood and how contesting these notions may lead to significant policy changes. The book proposes to bring conceptualisations of childhood/s and migrancy together in research on migration and post-migration integration and transnationality. Families, nation-states, civil society, as well as children themselves are central actors engaged in contesting the meaning of childhood. Childhood/s thus become a field of conceptual, moral and political contestation, where the “battles” may range from minor tensions and everyday negotiations of symbolic or practical importance involving a limited number of people, to open conflicts involving violence and law enforcement.