Gendered Dimensions of Migration and Conviviality: A Virtual Space for Autoethnographic Explorations of ‘Finding Home’

Abstract

Gendered dimensions of migration although mainstream current research, there is less attention given to migrant women’s social interaction and convivial experiences. As three transnational women living and working in Melbourne, we have our social lives outside work and family. During COVID-19 lockdowns, we found ourselves isolated with restrictions on social interaction and convivial gatherings. In this paper, we discuss how we experienced ‘conviviality’ while sharing our stories of ‘finding home’ in a virtual space. We engaged on Zoom to tour an exhibition about migrant stories–The Unending Absence (2017) at the Immigration Museum in Melbourne. We listened to migrants’ audio stories of ‘finding home’, then paused to write our individual experiences of migratory moves. Collaborative autoethnography facilitated our writing and reflexive dialoguing providing a safe and convivial space to share our experiences infused with emotions. Discussing our gendered migration journeys we found similarities and differences in cultural heritage, ethnicity, and belonging along with personal and professional identities structuring our choices, decisions, norms, and opportunities of ‘finding home’. Through reciprocal triadic lenses, we highlight how social interactions and being convivial are important to our ongoing well-being, whether we interact with others in person or using a virtual space.