Negotiating belonging beyond rootedness: Unsettling the sedentary bias in the Dutch culturalist discourse

Abstract

In the era of late or “liquid modernity”, we can observe the re-emergence of solid categories in the form of nationalistic sentiments and cultural contrasts. The growing culturalist discourse in most European societies is an example of the reification of cultural difference. Within this discourse, it is posited that the most “natural” link for migrants is to their countries of origin. This discourse suggests that generations of migrants living inside the nation are constructed as not belonging to it. This “sedentary bias” produces dichotomies of rootedness in the places of origin and uprootedness in countries where generations of migrants presently live. When normalized, this positioning limits differentiated, multilayered, and multi-sited possibilities of belonging. By comparing two sets of empirical data on diverse women in the Netherlands, this article shows how the inclusion of interpretations and negotiations of everyday interactions can enable alternative forms of positioning and belonging.