UNPACKING THE LOCAL IN THE STUDY OF THE RECEPTION OF ASYLUM SEEKERS: THE CASE OF LUXEMBOURG

Abstract

This article explores the significance of local contexts in the reception of asylum seekers by drawing on a qualitative study on the governance and implementation of reception policies in Luxembourg. Whilst contributing to a growing scholarship that has stressed the importance of the local dimension of asylum politics, the article advances the debate by unpacking the local and highlighting its internal multiplicity. It does so by exposing the heterogeneity of reception practices within individual local settings. Such heterogeneity, the article argues, calls into question an understanding of the local as a coherent unit of analysis in the field of asylum governance.